Is Love Safe?
by The Green-Eyed Wolf
Summary: Sequel to Are We Mortal? Some bonds are made, others are broken. Some stay true, some twist and turn into the most vile of relationships. A year has passed,and after a series of events in a single night the strength of lovers and friends will be tested.
1. Prologue

Is Love Safe?

Well everybody, the story continues with this brand new sequel: Is Love Safe? Now, I warn there is no real plan behind this story, and just like the last it's a kinda g-with-the-flow- thing. I'm making this up as I go along. But I will try and make this just as- no, better than the story before.

So without further ado, here it is.

_Chapter One- Prologue_

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The night was still and cool with a slight touch of moisture in the air- winter was on its way.

A lynx stared up to the stars with dancing, but powerful, violet eyes; her back leaning against the window pane as she gazed into the night with a distant look. A small breeze snaked its way through the air and into the window, brushing against her glowing, ashen fur. The fresh breeze stroked very strand of fur on her body, sending a pleasurable shiver down her spine with a groan of bliss escaping from her soft lips. She brought her paws up and wrapped them around her waist, her tail gently swinging just off the floor beneath her. She took in a deep breath and sighed with delight.

It was then she felt two strong, muscular arms wrap themselves around her waist, pulling. A soft mewl purred from the bottom of her throat as a set of lips lightly touched the bare side of her neck. Teeth gently nipping at the fur and skin, her mewl turned to a purr as the growl from the kisser's muzzle sent vibrations throughout her entire body. Her legs suddenly went limp and her body was caught in the grip of her lover's embrace.

She grinded her body back against his. Her lips turned into a sly smirk. "We shouldn't. It might wake Hao up." The lynx moaned.

"That makes it all the more mischievous." The male growled seductively as his paw slipped down from her waist to the base of her long tail, his touch was gentle yet firm at the same time.

The lynx groaned a little louder she buckled forward, spreading her arms on the window pane to steady herself, claws extended and raking into the smoothened wood. She felt his face close to hers again, his body leaning over hers as he buried his face into her shoulder, his cheek rubbing against hers- enjoying the feeling of his monochromatic fur strands tickling her cheek. "You're crazy Shen." She managed to find her breath.

"It comes with the job, my love." The panther whispered into her ear as his other hand went north whilst the other smoothed out the fur on her tail.

The lynx bit her lip. "Do you really think I'm going to let you just take me here?" She asked jerking her hips back and pushing him away. Turning around slowly she eyed her lover, his dark fur giving off a white aura in the shine of the moonlight; his golden eyes, burning with the lust and intensity of a roaring fire. The three claw marks now hidden slightly behind his fur. She swore that there was a slight hint of shrewdness hiding amongst those ember orbs. The lynx leaned casually, tipping her neck to the side, the moon bearing down on her open fur at the shoulder.

O, how she loved to tease him from time to time.

"You really want to play this game, Fu?" The feline growled as his teeth shone in the shadows of the room in the form of a smirk. "You know I'll just take you down in one swoop, before I ravage you senseless." His tail twitched in the shade. He wanted her- he wanted her bad.

Fu was deceptive and precise. She wanted to play this game, it was her move. Pushing herself from the window she slowly walked towards the panther, swinging her hips and tail to torment him a little more. She stepped up close to her lover and looked up into his fiery eyes. She smirked and brought up a single claw, unsheathing the nail as she trailed it over the fur of his bare burly chest. She drew nearer, pressing her body against his- his warm breath blowing over her whiskers. "I look forward to it." She whispered seductively and whipped her claw upwards to his chin.

Shen cracked his head to the side to avoid Fu's claw on his face. He remained in that position, head to one side. Then, slowly, he turned to glance at his lover just in time to see her striped and spotted tail disappear out the door of their bedroom. Shen chuckled to himself and was racing on his feet after her within a millisecond.

Like children they ran through the interior of the upper levels of their single house, the wood creaking and groaning underneath their feet as they scampered across every landing and banister, Fu laughing and squealing like a little girl as Shen chased after her with a lustrous glint in his eyes. Fu used a pillar as she swung in a great arc and made for the lower levels of the house, her feet swiftly and lightly running down the stairs. Shen was one step ahead; he looked down and hauled his large body over the banister, falling down onto the lower floor with such grace that his feet hardly made a sound. Fu stopped suddenly as she reached the bottom of the stairs only to find Shen standing, waiting with his black arms crossed over his chest.

The feline rose up one of her paws and pointed at him. "That's cheating." She smirked heedlessly. Shen did not move. Fu saw what he was doing and used the moment to turn and bolt for the kitchen. Two seconds later, Shen was after her again.

The kitchen room was large and rectangular, no candles were lit. Only the moonlight seeping through the windows was Fu's way of seeing where she treaded. She quickly ran past and round the table centred in the middle of the room. Shen was right behind her, having caught up. With professional effort he leapt across the table, sliding across its smooth wooden surface with ease before standing on the other side.

He smirked at Fu's misfortune.

When she had run round the table as a means to throw her lover off, she didn't expect to look over her shoulder and find him sliding across the furniture just to be standing right in front of her. She was trapped in the corner, unable to escape anywhere with his body so close to hers.

"Checkmate." Shen sneered playfully.

"You cheated." Fu snorted with a smirk.

"You never said there were rules." Shen countered quietly as he stepped closer and took her paw in his own; there was a soft clang sound as their claws laced around each other. Both Fu and Shen looked to their paws held up in the moonlight, seeing the gleam of their marital rings that donned their claws. Shen sighed through his nose. In the shine of the golden rings- crafted in the shape of twisting dragons- Shen saw the day when he proposed to Fu. He could remember the look on her face when he knelt before her and produced the rings from his pocket, the shock, the surprise- how could he forget?

And then the way she shook her head and shouted the same word over and over again as her lips rammed him with feverous kisses. And the night following, after he slipped one of the rings onto her finger as she did the same to him and he took her in his arms up to their room.

He certainly couldn't forget _that_ night- or any other.

Taking his gaze away from the rings and looking to his wife, Shen stepped forward with great force and cupped Fu's cheeks, bringing her into a passionate kiss. The lynx did not resist but welcomed it with as much enthusiasm and eagerness. Shen slipped his arms down from Fu's shoulders to her thighs, gripping them tightly as he forced her up against him. She was compliant and laced her legs around his torso.

Shen simpered through the kiss as he pushed up the endings of Fu's night gown, the kiss intensified as she moaned into his lips, her paws trailed along his chest and heading down to his waist, rushing to pull his pants down.

* * *

Out in the coolness of the night, hiding in the shadows of the trees, a band of forms moved swiftly and silently, the only sound being the slight crunch of the autumn leaves underneath their feet. They moved with care and accuracy up to the house.

One of them was a large figure: crawling along the flooring with paws that made the silence of a quill falling. The moonlight creeping through the breaks in the trees illuminating his hefty build with muscular arms and legs, a large tail grey tail swishing back and forth in time with every rise and fall of the animal's hunched shoulders. A set of knife-like emerald eyes cutting through the darkness with a hardened glare.

With their body set low to the ground, the creature had became more alert, their round ears stood upright at attention. He slipped out of the shadows and into the light of the Moon. He was a feline, a snow leopard, with fur as grey and ashen as dust. The clouded leopard stopped as his head snapped to the other side of the house where once clumsy figure- an ox- had mistakenly stepped on an overseen twig. The crack of the wood seemed as loud as a firework explosion.

Everything froze.

It was only after the feline gave the ox a death glare that he began to move again. He stopped and signalled with a low swing of his arm to the front of the house. About four shadows moved from the trees and positioned themselves either side of the front door and windows.

He looked over his shoulder and up into the trees where a horde of large birds sat in waiting, one of them nodded down to the leopard with a set of ice-cold blue eyes.

The feline then looked down and behind him where another low form crawled close to the floor- their movement was quick and quiet- he was the clouded leopard's only companion taking the back position of the house: a panther was the green-eyed feline's companion. They both nodded at each other and moved forward, getting to their full height as they brushed against the back wall of the building. They found a door. With a flick of the leopard's paw the panther was on the other side of the doorway. With a nod they both silently drew their blades.

* * *

Shen groaned and moaned as he rocked with his wife, their hips locked together in a loving embrace. He bit down on Fu's neck fur as his body suddenly went rigid and he heard his lover mewl out in blissful pleasure. They stopped their simultaneous movement as their passionate love came to an idyllic end. Shen held his wife close to his body as she sat on the counter side, their tails wrapped up together.

"Oh, Shen." He heard her whisper in his ear, finding her breath. "That was simply...divine."

_Crack._

The panther's ears were suddenly upright. His body was completely still. He thought he heard something outside the house, like the sound of a branch or twig snapping. Shen focused his hearing to the outside of the residence. Above his lover's pants he heard nothing. He wrapped his arms tighter around Fu. And then he saw it, thanks to him facing out the closed window his burning eyes spotted the movement of shadows against the floor outside the house. They were moving round to the backdoor.

Shen moved quickly, pulling him and his lover to the floor. Shen separated from her, leaving Fu both confused and shaken. She noticed the look in her husband's eyes as he pulled up his pants. "Shen, what's wrong?" She asked.

The panther was clamped a paw over her mouth. He raised a claw up to his lips before pointing to window above the counter. Fu's nodded as she understood his silent language. There was someone outside- but they were expecting no one. Shen slowly removed his paw as he reached up over the counter, feeling around for something to use as a weapon. Fu sorted herself out, ready to move when the moment called for it. Shen stuck out his tongue as his paw slid across the counter, he then smiled as he felt something in his paw. Pulling his hand back down to him, he eyed the weapon in his paw, a cutting knife.

It would do.

Looking at the knife and then to her husband, Fu followed Shen's every command. If she was to survive she had to do exactly as he said- every word. Her ears the flicked towards the backdoor that stood less than a meter away, the moonlight glowing on the rice paper window. A silhouette passed the door. Shen noticed it too. He reached behind him and took his wife's paw in his own. Their wedding rings touched. Slowly Shen got to his feet, Fu did the same. And then he quickly pulled her behind him as he forced both of them into the gap between the counter and the door.

With heaving chests Shen and Fu watched as the door handle twisted and turned, there was some clicking and scraping when the door didn't open. It then popped ajar. Shen drew in a deep breath and pushed Fu back against the wall. The lynx cupped her paws over her mouth to stop the whimpering escaping her throat.

Like a snake in the moonlight, the blade of a long sword came into view behind the door and then a hefty black paw. Before too long the form of a black panther stepped into the kitchen. Shen gripped the handle of the knife tightly in his paw as he stepped out from his hiding spot; wrapping a large arm around the feline's neck, clamping a paw over his mouth he plunged the glistening blade of the cutlery into the panther's chest. The feline's cries were muffled and his body jerked, dropping the large sword to the floor with a clang. Shen pulled out the blade and pushed the feline to the floor.

It was dead before it hit the ground.

Shen gazed down on the corpse with blazing orbs, its body illuminated. But a shadow soon loomed over the body, Shen turned to find a large clouded leopard standing in the doorway. Shen's eyes widened as he looked down to find the feline clutching a blade in his paw- it was malicious looking. The snow leopard stepped forward but only ended up with the door slamming in his face. He growled in his throat and pursed his lips.

Shen watched as Fu forced the door shut on the feline before he could take a step. She locked the door and gasped, her violet eyes came to meet Shen's. It was then the entire access shuddered, Fu screamed and put pressure against the door. Shen dropped the kitchen knife and was by her in an instant, pushing with all his force against the wood of the door. The leopard was trying to break in.

"When I say, run to Hao and make a break for it!" Shen hissed as he increased the force on his shoulder against the door.

"No! I'm not leaving you!" Fu cried as she slammed her back against the shuddering entrance.

Shen ignored her. "There are probably more of them, I'll create a distraction. When you see a clearing, you take it!" He retorted as he looked down to the corpse on the floor, eyeing the sword. He looked back to Fu. "When I give the word run for our room and grab my sword, then go for Hao." Fu looked into his golden orbs and nodded with thin lips. "Ready: one, two, three!"

Fu bolted from the door, running across the kitchen, Shen listened over the grunting of the leopard outside and the cracking of wood as Fu climbed the stairs; her feet indicating that she had done as ordered, running to their room before heading for Hao's. Shen was swift as he leapt from the door and rolled across the floor, picking up the dead panther's sword in his paws before turning to the door.

It burst open.

For only a few seconds the two felines stared at each other: Shen's burning ember orbs glaring into the leopard's ice-cold emerald eyes. It made Shen's fur bristle. He saw that the feline was toying with him, slowly getting up and onto his steady feet Shen pointed the tip of the sword at the leopard.

The feline never moved, only his eyes following Shen with a long lasting gaze. "Come on!" Shen barked at the feline. The snow leopard lowered his sword and opened his maw, unleashing a roar that echoed through the entire house and into the night air. Shen knew this type of roar from past experience. He was going to need leverage and much space to fight this animal.

The beast was almost feral.

Shen was in no position to fight this guy. He spun on his heels and was immediately running for the stairs.

It was then he noticed the blood-curdling roar was a call, a signal.

Every window and door on the lower floor was shattered as a horde of bandits burst into the house and surrounded Shen; they were twice his size- oxen, boars, gorillas. He was outmanned and outnumbered. The odds were against him. With two paws clutching the hilt of the sword, Shen eyed each and every one of his opponent. They encircled him; Shen was poised on his feet, blade raised.

Then, from out of the kitchen, Shen spotted the clouded leopard walk with a calm but powerful stride into the room; he stopped on the edge of the ring of bandits. He and Shen met eyes, the challenge was set.

With a low voice that was as strong as steel and as cold as ice, the leopard muttered two words. "Take him."

Every bandit surrounding Shen charged in at once with battle cries, the panther had no more than a split second to react. He crouched low and leapt high into the air as the armed men below clashed into one another, all eyes looked up as Shen clutched onto the wooden banister of the upper floors. He glanced down to the bandits and the leopard before looking to his side. His eyes had spotted a knotting of rope, following the trail he found that it connected to the chandelier of unlit candles hung above the gang. Shen smirked as he reached over and cut the rope with the sword, the cord whipped free and sent the chandelier crashing onto only a small portion of the crooks below. They were crushed underneath the weight, but the leopard, gorilla and a few oxen with bows still remained.

But Shen smiled knowing that the crash had taken out most of the leopard's men in one go and had blocked the entrance to the stairs. But that didn't falter the determination of remaining thugs as they all professionally leapt up and swung over the banisters on the other side. By then, Shen was already in his son's bedroom.

Shen slammed the door shut and stepped away from it, sword raised, eyes fixated. He jumped when he felt something latch onto his wrist; he yanked his arm free and rose up the blade higher only to lower it when he noticed that it was Fu. She was curled up behind Hao's over turned bed. In one paw she held his Shen's sheathed sword and in the other, the young hybrid cub himself. Hao's multicoloured eyes were bloodshot, tears running down his face. Shen sunk down to their level. "Thank the heavens." He then spoke quickly. "Now listen to me very carefully." He huddled close to his wife and cub. "Here's the plan."

A couple of seconds later the door to Hao's room was smashed to pieces; shards flying into the room and lodging themselves in the walls, flooring and the overturned bed. The large leopard was first in, his fists balled and teeth bared. His eyes quickly scanned the room until he marked Shen, Fu and Hao by the window.

"Now!" She barked loudly as he swung Hao onto his back, the cub taking a firm grip of his father's fur as the family leapt from the window and onto the ground. They didn't evens stop to breath as Shen took his wife's arm and half-ran, half-dragged her down the road. "GO! GO!" He cried.

From the window, the snow leopard slowly walked up to the window and stared down on the family growing smaller in the distance. He looked up to see that the flock of birds perched on top of the trees prepare to take flight. "Wait!" He commanded with a booming voice. The many bandits stood down as they looked at him with scrutinizing eyes. The leopard sheathed his sword and held out a paw to one of the oxen behind him. "Bow." He snapped. Within seconds a bow and single arrow was placed in his paw. He clipped the projectile onto the string and pulled back his paw, raising the tip high into the sky. He relaxed his fingers. The arrow shot off. The feline was still for a minute before he turned to his men and threw the bow back to the oxen. "Let's go."

Every member of the team gathered as the snow leopard took the lead. They casually walked down the dirt path; the leopard drew his sword from his belt as he spotted a figure lying up ahead. When close enough he noticed the figure crawling forward, away from the group. The arrow, the one he had fired from the house, lodged through their left shoulder. With a push of his foot on the figure, the snow leopard rolled the form over onto their back. Every shadow stared down to the figure on the floor with deathly eyes.

It was Shen, and he was smiling.

Fu and Hao were long gone.


	2. And So It Begins

Is Love Safe?

Chapter Two- And So it Begins

* * *

The Sun was warm on his fur coat, the low winds lightly bushing through every strand with a tender touch; the autumn morning was a welcoming one.

Taking in a slow, deep breath through his nose, Po leaned casually on the complex shape of his makeshift walking staff. His large black paws groping at the thick wooden surface of the bark as he carelessly leaned on the stick for support; his emerald eyes glowing with limitless energy of a young child, but with the hardened features of a growing man inside their jade coloured rims. The panda tilted his head to the side as he inspected the form standing just a few meters away from him.

In the gravity of the stare down Po could not help himself but let a coy smile tug at the corner of his lips.

His opponent was a complex as he. She was strong and fast, swift and nimble. Her eyes burned so brightly it made the sun look like a simple candle flame; they shone with a mysterious yet scrutinizing gaze as they ogled back at Po shrewdly. Her form was slender yet firm, straight yet amazingly flexible- most definitely. Her fur glowed with a torrent of orange, black and white; each colour contrasting to the next, from the markings atop her forehead to the stripes running down her arms and back, all the way to her long ringed tail slowly swiping from side to side.

Po leaned off his walking staff as he kicked up the bottom part off the floor, spun it around his body in a dance of twirls and twists before slipping into a low stance with the stick pointed at his opponent. The foe smirked as they too slowly went into their signature position.

She was the first to move, charging forward. Po copied her movements and sprinted boldly towards her, making his next move when she was close enough that Po could reach out and touch her. The panda slammed his staff into the floor and used the momentum of the sudden stop in his charge to spin over his opponent and land on the floor gracefully. He wasted no time in spinning on his heels in time to swipe away an oncoming fist with the staff. But his adversary latched her other paw onto the staff, tightly holding it horizontally between them. Po narrowed his eyes as he reached across with a fist aimed straight at the female's face.

But her defence did not falter so easily; she brought back her free paw and smacked away Po's fist before it could come anywhere near her face. They both drew back a fist and slammed into each other's chest, forcing them both back.

But neither let go of the staff amid them- either too determined, or too stubborn to even think about it.

It was like fighting a mirror; simultaneously they both rose up a foot and kicked each other square in the chest, the force making them finally liberate their grip on the staff. It dropped to the floor. Po's jade eyes never left his opponent, nor did she do the same. But, unconsciously, they both kicked again, this time against the falling staff between them.

The might behind the synchronized kicks sent the stick roaring into the sky between them.

Neither adversary took their gaze away from each other.

Both pair of eyes turned to slits.

Before too long they engaged in a fiery close-quarter scrap of furry kicks and swipes as they held onto each other with resolute claws.

From the sidelines, an audience of Kung Fu Masters; Crane, Monkey, Mantis and Viper watched with gawking mouths and engrossed eyes, none of them had seen Po move so fast and with precision against one of their own. Tigress was a fierce competitor, but it seemed that this match had to be the most long lasting that the pair had ever affianced in. All eyes watched as Tigress and Po held onto the staff amongst them with concrete grips, swiping and kicking at each other before sending the makeshift stick high into clouds.

They all followed the staff as it travelled into the sky, before snapping their gazes down on the combatants once more. Situated high on the walking platform that ran around the Training Hall, Grand Master Shifu starred down on the spar with inquisitive sapphire eyes, his attention mainly focused on Po than Tigress- watching every strike, swipe and kick, all of it being noted inside the sage red panda's mind. His blue eyes slowly watched the staff got sent into the sky before focusing back on his students.

After a short while he then looked up through his brows to the ember sky where he saw the mangled form of the staff remerge from the clouds and drop back down to the ground.

Shifu felt a discreet smile creep its way onto his lips, a plan formulated in his mind- a sneaky one.

Po finally managed to get some distance between him and Tigress on the field; just enough to get a breather before the feline lit into him again with a flurry of swift blows. Po had to move fast just to keep up, he was faltering- and she could tell. Pursing his lips, Po managed to have the chance of catching one of Tigress' paws and pulled with all his strength as he leapt back, dragging her through the air with him. Tigress was off balance for a few seconds, more than enough time for Po to push forward with his her paw in his own but he did not remember that she still could reach her legs out and kick him, till he felt the air get taken from his lungs. She just delivered a knee to his chest, a strong one.

Po's face turned a slight shade of red as the blood rushed to his face. He groaned at the pain but pushed onwards. Furrowing his eyebrows, the panda pulled Tigress towards him and reached across with his free paw to swipe at her face with an open palm. He felt the pad of his paw make contact, her head jerked to the side as she was sent spinning, but not before she landed another kick in the spin that smacked into Po's cheek.

The panda was knocked from his feet and onto his back but was quick to plant his paws on the ground before swinging his legs and using the momentum to get back onto his feet. He looked over to Tigress to find her already back in stance.

Po stood nonchalantly for a minute, leaning back imperturbably as he brought a paw up to his chest and gulped hard, his face still a tint of red from when the air was knocked out of him. He took a deep gasp of air. Tigress smirked as her tail swished behind her. The panda squinted as he forced a smile at the feline, nodding his head stiffly.

So that's how it's gonna be.

Alright then.

It was then Po glanced- with a leer smirk- skyward and noticed his staff falling back down from the clouds. Tigress followed his gaze. The pair connected eyes, each guessing who would make the next move. Po went first, spinning on his heels as he darted for the nearest wall and ran upside it, climbing onto the tiled roofing that ran all round the forecourt. Tigress saw what Po planned to do; he was going after the staff. The feline moved quickly as she leapt up into the sky, her powerful legs giving the spring she needed to fly for the stick. Po caught Tigress' movements out the corner of his eye as he bound for his staff.

Po was the first to get it. The panda smirked as he felt the staff in his grip once more, but then, Tigress' form was beside him in an instant. With the spin in her leap she outstretched a foot and wheeled it round. Po moved quickly as he rose up the staff in time to block the kick, but he sensed a change in weight on the end of the stick. Tigress had taken hold again.

As the competitors reached the stable floor once more they were at it again.

At either end of the staff, Tigress flicker her wrist in sending Po's end of the stick in a great twisting circle. The panda leapt and went with the flow of the turn. Tigress tried again a millisecond after his feet skimmed the ground; Po went with the momentum once more. Not giving her the advantage again Po leaned forward with his arm hoping that the end of the staff would strike the feline, but Tigress used her flexible body to lean back as the stick swung in an arc mere inches from her nose.

Po did not hesitate as Tigress' posture corrected, he placed his palm against the butt of the staff and pushed. Tigress did the same her end but Po's figure was almost twice her size; using his weight to overpower the feline he pushed forward with his feet and arms as Tigress was backed up against one of the walls. She grunted as he back grinded against the stone surface of the wall, a growl erupted from the depths of her throat. Po smiled to himself but hardened his gaze as drew back and slammed his paw against the butt of the stick. Tigress was a step ahead, rolling along the rod as her end smacked into the wall, but still keeping it in her grasp. Po rolled along the opposite side of the long stick and reached across with arm just in time to block an oncoming strike from Tigress' claw.

Strike after strike the pair swung for each other, turning so now their bodies faced together and their faces were inches from each other as their arms and wrists intersected with every paralleled swipe. In the heat of the close fight, Tigress could feel his warm breath on her fur, it made her shudder- but enough to make her back down. But that one little instant of distraction was a big cost on Tigress' behalf. The panda had seen her eyes flutter in pleasure, giving him the benefit to grasp both her wrists with one hefty paw, leaning over and deal a blow to her a head butt.

Tigress gritted her teeth together as she felt a thunderous headache ring through her skull, her eyes rolled into the back of her head. She had misjudged the strength of his forehead; it was tougher than it looked. Po didn't wait for Tigress to recover from the surprising blow, reaching over to latch his paw on the end of the staff and twist it out of her grasp. It worked.

And with a great finish Po spun round and swung the stick low to the ground, eventually catching Tigress' feet and sweeping them from beneath her. The feline grunted as her head hit the ground, she opened her eyes and got ready to pounce for Po but came face to face with the end of the panda's makeshift staff.

Po towered above her, a victorious smile on his chubby cheeks and glint of triumph in his little lost-boy eyes. "Skadoosh." He cheered loud enough for the feline to hear. Both competitors took deep breaths as the sparring had finally come to a close. Tigress sighed in defeat and rose up her paws in surrender. Po's smile then broadened as he planted the staff on the floor and reached down with his free paw, Tigress propped herself up and reached out to grasp his helping paw.

But it was then a single sound echoed through the training grounds, it was loud and simple but in Po's mind he understood the meaning behind the very sound. It was a signal that Grand Master Shifu used all the time in training: the snap of his fingers.

_Snap._

It was in that instant that all the remaining Kung Fu Warriors that had once been the audience to the sparring match, sprang into action and dove for Po with a synchronized cry of 'Hiya'. Po's head snapped in time to see Crane, Monkey, Mantis and Viper all charge for him. With widened eyes he turned back to Tigress in time pull a pout-like face before turning and running for his life bursting through the training ground doors and out into the gardens. "Gotta run!" He shouted as his large form disappeared down the steps, the Kung Fu Warriors hot on his toes.

Shifu shook his head as he gradually limped down the steps of the Training Hall, chuckling to himself as he made his way over to Tigress, he helped his foster daughter up and onto her feet as they walked side by side to the doors of the grounds.

"He gets better every day." Tigress commented as she crossed arms and leaned carelessly leaned against the doorframe, staring down on the remaining Kung Fu Masters as they chased Po around the grounds. The feline laughed at the sight. "But he's still a child inside."

"I doubt he'll ever be able to let go of that side of him." Shifu said: hands masterly folded behind his back. "But true, he grows better with every match." The aged panda raised an eyebrow to Tigress. "Did you let him win?" He asked slowly.

The feline sighed with a smile, her eyes never leaving Po for a second. "That was the plan, at first. But that last move was all his own." She admitted without a second thought. "I...I got distracted." She finally managed to look away, a redness glowing underneath her cheeks.

Shifu's ears lowered at the last remark. His head dropped a little, his sapphire eyes glued to the ground- but his mind, widely searching for what to say next. It eventually came out. "Tigress, I know that you and Po are together and I know it's been over a year since then, but I'm worried." Shifu's blue eyes moved from the ground and looked to Tigress, they connected with an iron gaze. Shifu's eyes were sympathetic yet caring. "I think this thing between you and Po is affecting your training."

Tigress' arms quickly unravelled themselves and stood at her sides. She gazed down on Shifu with hardened eyes. "This _thing_ between me and Po is of our own personal accord. It has _not_ affected my training. I am _not_ faltering nor will I in the future!" Her voice growled deeply.

Shifu's face twisted into a stern glare as he looked up to daughter with provocative eyes. "I will not be talked to like that, Tigress." The Grand Master barked. "As your Master _or_ your Father!" Tigress had to summon a large amount of will power not to lean down and strike the red panda across the cheek. She took a few paces ahead of the red panda and stopped atop the stairs. Her eyes fixed on the fight below to calm herself. Shifu's voice continued on. "I am merely concerned for your safety." The red panda's face softened a little. "I already lost two children, Tigress. I nearly lost a third, even a fourth!" Shifu looked away and off into the horizon; the ember sky mixing with the jutting rocks of the jagged mountains, the Sun emanating of his oceanic blue eyes. "When we were in the Dragon's Pass, that morning when you were fighting Chen..." The old master's lip started to tremble. "...when he's teeth bit down on you and threw you around like his rag doll, I thought that was it. I thought that I had lost you."

Tigress closed her eyes and bit her lip, running a paw up her shoulder. She could feel them, the scars. The scars of where Chen Hue Leigh- the former Leader of the Thousand Arrows- had sunk his malicious teeth into her skin. Sure, the holes had been filled and covered; but the scars would never fully heal, they would forever remain as a reminder of the catastrophe that happened almost a full year ago. The touch of the holes underneath her collar made the feline shudder as the memories swam in her mind.

"I'm sorry, Tigress. I meant no ill of you and Po." Shifu's voice tenderly touched the feline's ears. She opened her eyes and let out a choking gasp, a few tears rolling down her cheeks. Tigress looked down as she felt the Grand Master's small bony hand on her large furry arm. "I'm sorry." Shifu repeated as he looked up into Tigress' burning eyes with an apologetic glance. Tigress knelt down to Shifu's eye level. "I just don't want to lose you again." The feline felt more tears come to her eyes as she leaned forward and wrapped her large muscular arms around Shifu's neck, lifting him off the ground as the red panda returned the hug with as much strength and love in the grip.

"I'm sorry too, Baba." Tigress wept into the red panda's robe.

They soon separated; wiping their bloodshot eyes of the remaining tears before composing themselves. "Whatever may happen in the future, Tigress..." Shifu soon spoke up, his voice holding a stable pitch. "...know I'll be there to support you." The Grand Master turned and trudged down a few stone steps; he soon paused and turned back to Tigress. "Oh, one more thing, I know that most parents which to have grandchildren if their own decided to find a lover." Tigress' eyes widened and her mouth hung open slightly agape. "But for now, let's wait a little while till you and Po ha-"

"I-I'll be sure to wait, Shifu!" Tigress quickly interrupted, her cheeks blushing a brilliant shade of red. "I don't think I'm ready for _that_, just yet."

Shifu closed his mouth and chuckled at his daughter's reaction. "Forgive me, Tigress. Sometimes this old panda can be curious." He smiled before turning back to the path and then stopped, yet again. His ears flicked upright as they twitched. It was the sound of a raspy voice echoing in the air. It was disquiet, riddle with stutters and quick. The Grand Master turned when he recognised the heavy breathing of the Palace goose messenger, Zeng. "Master Shifu!" The avian called out as he landed down beside Shifu in a ball of feathers.

Shifu raised a bushy eyebrow at the goose's entrance. "Zeng."

Zeng wobbled to his feet as he straightened out his robe before looking up to the old red panda with dot-like eyes. "Master Shifu, there's someone at the gate!"

Shifu lowered his head as he pinched the bridge of his nose in frustration. "What is this time, Zeng? I have no time for little problems with the villagers."

"I- I don't think she was a villager of the Valley."

Tigress joined her Master's side as the conversation reached her small but sensitive ears. "She?" The feline enquired.

The goose turned to Tigress, nodding as his eyes looked back to Shifu. "Y-Yes, she was a woman. A-a lynx, I think. And there was a child with her." Zeng paused for a moment as he tried to conjure up an understanding of the little one with the lynx. "I can't really describe the youngling, he...he...he looked different." The goose then added tentatively. "And I think she's ill, the lynx, h-her face...it...it looked ashen."

Shifu and Tigress both stood silent for a few long minutes, each trying to decipher the description of the two villagers that Zeng had mentioned. A lynx and an unexplainable young cub with her; it then dawned on the two Kung Fu Masters. With gaping mouths, Tigress and Shifu locked eyes. There was only one kind of lynx that both the Grand Master and student were familiar with, a figure of Shifu's past. "You don't think..." Tigress whispered.

Shifu did not waste his time in replying; the red panda was already rushing past Zeng, skipping two steps at a time as he bolted for the Arena as fast as his small legs could take him. Tigress was quick to follow on after him, not stopping as she passed Po and the others. The Kung Fu Masters all looked at her with questioning eyes as she sprinted by without a word along with Shifu. Po, Crane, Monkey, Mantis and Viper all shared glances between each other. A second later they were following after their Master and comrade.

Upon arriving at the arena, Shifu, Tigress and the gang all gathered as their Master bolted for the door. With an effortless tug on the rings the red wooden doors creaked open. Shifu mentally cursed himself and to Zeng for keeping the female waiting outside; if his suspicions were correct, then this would be no ordinary woman standing on the other side of the door.

It was then, as the large doors were pulled apart that Shifu's eyes shrunk to the size of dots. Half-standing, half-leaning against the stone archway of the entrance, dressed only in a night gown and nothing else stood a lynx. She was slim but had a reasonable figure; her fur was ruffled an uneven, but her eyes are what made Shifu's old heart shatter and break, in their bloodshot violet colouring Shifu could not see any power or love behind them, only a broken heart and a sensitive young child weeping. Tear stains ran down her matted fur.

Shifu's throat went dry. "Fu...?" The feline did not say a word, but rather collapsed right onto the Grand Master, only giving Shifu enough time to catch her before she fell to the ground. Her body was limp in his arms. "Fu!" At the sound of their Master's cry the Five and Po were by his side: Viper and Mantis already inspecting the lynx.

But as everybody looked down on the incapacitated feline, no one had remembered –nor was prepared- for the next cry that was not their own, but that of a broken yet sweet cub's voice.

"_Mama!"_ Hao shrieked as he ran up to his Mother and sunk onto her chest with glassy eyes.

The Kung Fu Masters staggered.

"Mama?" They all asked.


	3. Like Looking in a Mirror

Is Love Safe

Chapter Three- Like looking in a Mirror

* * *

It was cold, so very cold.

The floor was wet and freezing; Shen physically shivered as he felt something frosty brush along the shins of his damped pants. He opened his heavy eyes as he starred down on a white blanket of fuzzy snow. The panther let his head swing before gathering enough will power to ensure that his sense returned to him. He wasn't walking, he was being dragged. Shen tried to move his wrists but was met with a sharp sting of tight rope cutting into his skin, the burn in his chest and shoulders told him that he was tied with his arms behind his back. He tried to move his legs, same situation.

There was a dried metallic taste of blood in his mouth.

The panther twisted his neck to either side of him. He managed to catch sight of two hazy portrayals of what could he could only guess were large boars. He didn't see their faces: he didn't need to- the smell was too rancid to be of any other animal. Shen felt himself slipping through one of the hogs' grasp; the boar was quick to take a firmer grasp as he reached out and took a hoof against Shen's left shoulder. The panther yowled in response; the boars took no notice of him other than chuckling darkly.

Savouring his strength for the right moment Shen let his head drop again as he left his physical body, sinking deep into his mind as he tried to replay the last events that his mind could fathom on how he came to be in this predicament. He could see it all in his mind: he was at home with Fu, Hao was in bed. He could see himself running around their house and into the kitchen, their loving moment of pure bliss. And then the shadows, the feral snow leopard, the raid on the house.

Fu!

Hao!

And then he was running, running with his family before...before being struck in the shoulder by an arrow, collapsing to the floor and screaming at his wife and son to keep running; to run for the Valley of Peace. He remembered watching them leave him as he was surrounded by all the shadows of the attackers, smiling at them before letting the darkness consume him.

It was then; Shen felt his body get dropped to the floor. He was brought back into his body and out from his mind. The snow was bitter against his bare upper torso, the ice soaking his pants to the point where his legs were far from being able to sense anything. A prickly wind poked at his fur. Shen groaned as he struggled to sit up. The panther grunted as he dragged his legs to his side and forced his body to sit up on his knees. He sighed once sat in the snow.

Taking a few deep breaths and collecting his senses fully, Shen allowed his vision to focus in. He looked around as the hazy images turned sharp, he was in the centre of what seemed like a camp; tents all encircled the panther, facing in on him. A low wind danced through the encampment, snowflakes passing by like shooting bullets. They had to be in the mountains somewhere. Shen caught a few glimpses of occupants that weaved around the tents- none giving him the slightest glance of attention. But there was a wide range of species: there was a certain amount of boars and oxen, maybe one or two gorillas, a small pack of wolves and horde of felines- ranging from white and south china tigers to both normal and snow leopards. Even a few aviators flew overhead- all them criminals, no doubt.

But out of all that was happening, Shen focused his yellow eyes on the large canopy situated right infront of him. It was larger than any other tent in the camp, to his guess. The front curtains were drawn back, giving him the full view of everything that went on inside. Positioned around a small rotund table a large eagle, a hulky-looking wolf and a third figure underneath a cloaked hood all starred down on the table and the contents lying on its surface. Shen squinted his eyes as he tried to see beneath the darkness of the hood, useless attempts.

The panther watched as the bandits that had raided his house scatter into separate tents, disappearing inside- all for one, the large snow leopard he had first run into. With glaring orbs Shen followed the feline as he walked inside the canopy and stopped at entrance. After a short while the wolf and eagle rose from their seats on the floor and exited the tent. The snow leopard followed and stood next to the entrance, still as a rock.

In the light of the horizon Sun Shen could make out the eagle and wolf much easier. The avian was huge for his species; his wings were broad and stiff underneath his sinister black, yet jagged feathers. His claws and beak were malicious, long and dark, like his feathers. He starred down on Shen with a pair of piercing blood red orbs that looked as if they could kill with a simple blink.

The wolf was tall and surprisingly muscular; his fur was ashen grey. A thin, menacing white mane ran from the tip of his large tail running all the way up his powerfully built back- halfway covered by a criss-cross of two strapped sheathed swords- to the tip of his bristly hair, the white fur marks drizzling down around his eyes like a mask. His eyes, themselves, were too a crimson red yet surprisingly held a serene glint in their gaze. His pointy ears were perched forward at Shen. The wolf tiled his head aside and stroked his long fur-coated chin.

"Hmm, are you sure he's the right one?" He asked in a softly spoken but deep voice.

The eagle stepped forward and scoffed. "This surely cannot be the right guy." He hissed. "Look at him! He's not even of the same species."

"It doesn't rule out the fact that it still could be him, Hei Xin." The wolf countered calmly as he placed his paws on his hips. "This fresh meat looks fit enough, he has some features that do match the person we're searching for."

The avian snapped his head at the lupine and glared harshly, the wolf seemed unmoved. "I'd keep that loose tongue of yours tucked away behind your teeth, Leo." The eagle spat. "It's going to get you killed one day."

The wolf- presumably named Leo - raised a white eyebrow. "Is that a challenge, Hei?"

"A threat is more the word I'd choose." Hei, the eagle, smirked as his red eyes hardened.

Shen eyed the wolf and eagle with inquisitive orbs; it was obvious that these two animals loathed one another, and yet they seemed to balance each other out. Like yin and yang. The panther noticed that whoever they guys were, however, they were nothing to look over: they were large and very strong. It could be possible for Shen to take both of them on but he was in no position to fight. He was half naked, his arms and legs were bound and his shoulder was shot to Hell- literally. And yet, out of all the odds against him and in his current condition, with the members of the camp gathering around Hei Xin and Leo, Shen couldn't help but hold his own tongue.

"Umm, excuse me, ladies?" The panther piped up. Leo and Hei turned to him. "Is there any reason why you're getting your panties in a twist?" Hei's eyes thickened and gleamed a red aura. Leo was smiling. Shen still carried on. "I'm guessing that you're here to kill me or torture me but can you finishing your little baby cries till _after_ you've done away with me?" He gave a comedic grin and shrugged his shoulders. "Just a guy's last wishes." A few of the members of the camp looking in cackled at the panther's jokes. The snow leopard to at the tent's entrance was still and solemn, the same for Hei.

Leo, surprisingly, was laughing like everyone else. "I like this guy."

Shen turned his head away to encourage the spectators but was only met with a strike across his temple when he looked back to Hei. The eagle had smitten him with a strike from one of his large bulky wings. Shen was knocked on his side and into the snow. The laughter stopped immediately.

"You dishonourable cub!" Hei barked. "How dare you make fun of me, you have any idea who I am?" He screeched. Shen rolled onto his front; he could feel a warm liquid trailing down the side of his head. The panther grunted and suddenly roared as he felt Hei's razor like claws sink into the open wound where the arrow had struck him in the shoulder. The pain was intense. "I'm your worst nightmare! And I'm going to make you wish you were never born..."The eagle slowly rose up his other claw, ready to swipe them down on Shen's neck. "...insignificant whelp!"

Shen braced himself and closed his eyes as he waited for the strike to come, yet he never felt it. Opening his eyes and straining to looking up, Shen spotted that the eagle's claws had been stopped by the silent snow leopard's firm paw. Hei snapped his head to the feline with a death glare.

"What's going on out here?" Came a tuneful yet influential voice. All eyes turned to the canopy as the third figure finally stepped out and into the sunlight. Hei managed to wretch his claw free and removed himself from Shen's body. The feline gasped as the claws were taken away from the wound.

The panther was quick to get back onto his knees once more. He eyed the hooded figure as they made their way towards him, Hei and the snow leopard. All the campers bowed down to one knee- even Leo- as the figure passed them, they stayed in that position. Finally coming up to Hei Xin, the eagle reluctantly bowed, the snow leopard was quick to follow. The darkness of the hood leered over the two figures before turning to Shen. "What is your name?" A voice hissed.

Shen hesitated as he pursed his lips. "Shan, Shan Yi." He lied through his teeth.

"Shan Yi." The hooded form repeated. "It would do you well not to anger my men, especially Hei. He has a rather...short temper but a mighty fury. I'd be sure to keep yourself well disciplined. If it was not for Ling here..." The figure nodded towards the kneeling snow leopard. "...your head would be bouncing down the slopes of the mountain like a pebble."

"Well that's great." Shen sarcastically hissed. His ember eyes burned as the memories of the night when his family was attacked flooded his mind. "I guess I can also thank him for breaking into my house and trying to harm my wife and son!"

"That was not the mission. I was not after them, I was after _you_." The form stated as they eyed Ling.

"Why me?" Shen cried.

The mysterious figure looked back to Shen from underneath the darkness of their hood. "Because I have searched for you ever since I learned you were born into this world. Because I know who you are, and your name is not Shan Yi." The figure kneeled into the snow so that their hood was mere inches from Shen's face. The panther's eyes were like slits, trying to see into the shadows of the hood.

"Your real name is Jing Shen."

"How do you know that?" The panther asked, pursing his lips and keeping a stone-like face.

"Why by blood of course." The figure chuckled. "I know that this panther look of yours is a fake, Shen. And how do I know of your real name, well?" It was then, the figure bought out two arms and drew back the hood of their cloak. Shen's eyes widened to the size of dinner plates. The figure was a female, not a male, a lioness to be precise. Her fur was a golden auburn, short and smooth. Her ears, small and round atop her head. Her eyes were like Shen's, a glowing set of golden orbs set alight with a burning fire that had a commanding yet tender gaze.

"That's because I'm your Sister, older sister actually." Shen's heart stopped, his skin went pale and his black fur turned ashen slightly. It was almost like looking in a mirror, in a nightmare. The lioness cupped Shen's cheek; it was cold against his fur. The panther shivered at her touch. "You can call me Jai Wu, Little Brother." She gave Shen a soft hitherto straight smile. "But for now, I think we'll start with just Commander." Jai stood to full height as she turned back to the tent. The members of the camp got to their feet. "Ling, he's your problem." The snow leopard bowed his head slightly. "Make sure he's got a tent and something good to eat; he's going to need it."

"Oh, and one more thing..." The lioness topped as she turned back to Shen. "Welcome to family Little Brother.


	4. Orders of Lust

Is Love Safe?

Chapter Four- Orders of Lust

* * *

Jai Wu laid comfortably back against the bark of an old oak tree, nestled in the elbow of the largest branch near the top, her golden eyes fixated up on the sparkling sky with curiosity as she had always done as a cub. Her tail lightly swung from side to side beneath her, the little tuff of black fur swaying from side to side like a pendulum. With her arms cosily laced behind her head as a pillow the lioness let a triumphant smirk snake its way onto her luscious lips.

It was the thought of finally finding her long lost little brother, she was reunited with him. After so many years apart, of him not even knowing that she existed he was in her grasp- oh boy, did she have plans for Shen.

Jai sighed.

How long had she watched over Shen? How long had she lived since her brother was born into the world? How long had she followed him, everywhere he went, hidden in the shadows- _his_ shadow?

Too long, Jai guessed.

The feline blinked as a dark form swam across the starry night sky. Jai pulled her arms from behind her head and stood up masterfully on the branch, her head still facing the sky. The dark form passed over again, it looked down with dark eyes. The enigma dive-bombed into the trees a small distance away. Jai spun on her heels and hopped off the branch, falling down onto the snowy floor of the mountain side with little sound in her gracious landing.

Standing up and drawing her hood over her eyes, Jai unhurriedly made her way further into the woods to greet her envoy. She soon came to the part of the woods where the shadow had landed, she stopped and looked up, perched on the lowest branch was a heron; his feathers white like the snow and his eyes a dark hollow colour. The avian leapt from the tree and softly fluttered down on the ground.

As soon as his claws touched the snow he dropped to one knee and bowed his head. "Commander." He respectively addressed.

Jai lifted a paw. "Rise. What news have you for me?"

The heron stood and- because he was slightly taller- looked down his beak to the cloaked feline. "The men stand at their positions, ready for your word to move. Though they are waiting, they're inpatient to hesitate. I do not blame them, attacking such a place is unlike any order you've given."

Jai titled her head to the side, her eyes burning in the darkness. "You doubt my orders." The words came out more like a statement than a question, the avian gulped heard- the fear was clear in his eyes but his composure calm and stoic. He tipped his head forward a little.

"Not I, My Lady, but the other men. I have heard their whispers that they question your rule and decisions." The heron hesitated; Jai's expression was unchanged from underneath her covering. The heron changed the subject quickly. "We managed to track the lynx and her cub to the valley of Peace. She's residing within the Jade Palace." Jai gave a toothy, yet seductive grin, her white fangs gleaming in the shadows of the trees. The heron was terrified. The feline stepped towards him with a sultry walk, the heron backed up but Jai still kept moving closer to him. He was soon backed up against a sturdy tree stump. Jai was very close now, so near to the avian that her toes touched his claws. Her whiskers tickled his beak; he could see the fire alight in her eyes. The oppressive smile was still on her lips. Slowly, as if teasing him, Jai roe up a paw and trailed her fingers up the heron's chest- his breathing was heavy and quick. "C-Commander?"

Jai shushed him with a claw on his beak. "Don't be so afraid of me, my little birdie, I don't bite...much. That is unless you make me unhappy." In a quick flash her paw was around the heron's throat. Her grip was as strong as a vice, the air was cut off from the avian's lungs; he could feel her razor-sharp claws digging into the skin on his neck. His eyes began to roll in the back of his head. "Like now!" Jai growled deeply, she knew that the bird could still hear. "I don't care what the men think of me, they are still alive only to follow my orders. You tell them that if they want to question my authority then it's the last mistake they ever make." She gave a push of her paw and released the heron's throat. He collapsed to the ground, convulsing. "_Men..." _She hissed. "...always thinking with what's between their legs, never their brains." She turned her back to the heron as he pushed to his feet. "Order the men to attack."

"What of the residents?" The avian chocked as he rubbed his long neck.

Jai was silent for a few seconds. And then, with a soft and authoritative tone, cold as the snow beneath her feet, she said. "Slaughter them all_._ Start with the cub."

Allowing herself a dark chuckle, Jai listened as the heron leapt into the sky and beat his wings, the sound growing more and more distant- heading for the Jade Palace. Her eyes turned to the sky once more, seeing the shrinking figure of the heron flapping his wings as he crossed over the horizon. A strong wind danced through the woodland area, catching Jai's cape and blowing it vigorously at her side.

It then settled.

The lioness lowered her head as her ear twitched to behind her, underneath the fabric of her hood. She had known that the figure standing in the wake of her had witnessed everything that just occurred between her and the heron. "I don't you remember ever doing that to me." A softly spoken voice said vaguely with a low tone.

The lioness spoke over her shoulder. "I've given you more than you're fair share of..._dynamism, _Leo, don't go and get all greedy now." Jai smirked playfully in the shade of her hood.

Leaning against the bark of a tree, his muscular arms crossed over his large bare furry chest, Leo unravelled them as he pushed from the bark and calmly walked up to Jai. The lioness turned as she could feel his heavy yet controlled breathing through the seams of her hood. She looked up to Leo with wide eyes. The lupine stared back down with his crimson orbs. "Whoever said I was getting greedy, when you offer yourself so easily and without any payment." He smirked.

Jai countered teasingly. "Maybe I should start asking then for something in return."

Leo sighed through his nose as he brought up his hulky paws and laid them on Jai's hood, pushing them down as the hood fell back and revealed her face fully in the light of the twinkling stars. Jai could feel his warm breath on her fur strands, her sensitive whiskers rippling with the touch of tepid air from his sigh. The lioness visibly shivered at his touch of his cupping of her cheeks- they were cold and somehow had an affectionate touch in them too- the shudder travelled all the way to the tip of her tail. Jai's voice shook in bliss.

Leo smirked in success. "Getting goose-bumps are we?"

Jai tilted her head into one of Leo's paws and nuzzled it with a long-lasting purr. She eyed the wolf with tapering eyes. "You only know my weak spots, Leo. Why do you tease me?" She stepped closer to the wolf and placed her paws flatly on his chest, gripping some of the fur, Leo growled in half-pain half-pleasure. Her body grinded against his own, she could feel the bulge in his mid-section. Jai purred louder and even longer. Leo brought the lioness' face close to his and planted a soft kiss on her succulent lips, answering her question the way she liked it.

"Still think men only think with what's between their legs?" He asked with a lowered eyebrow of his white mask.

Jai blushed underneath her golden fur and silenced her lover quickly with a more passionate, loving and carnival kiss on his lips. Leo grasped her tightly from her slender waist as she jumped up and wrapped her legs around his hips, their bodies connected- almost. Jai broke off the kiss with a growl of seduction.

"Not you, never you." She whispered. "Now show me what ya got, big boy!"

Leo wasted no time as he released his grip on Jai's waist, relying on her holding onto him as he brought his paws between them and began to unbutton the clips of her cloak and vest. "As My Lady commands." Leo growled lustfully as he finally managed to shred Jai's top clothing from her body, tossing it into the snow.


	5. The First Strike at Midnight

Is Love Safe?

Chapter Five- The First Strike at Midnight

* * *

There was something about tonight that seemed different.

Something seemed out of place, abnormal.

Unsettling.

Po stood at the ragged edge of the Sacred Peach Tree with an unmoving, yet troubled bearing. The panda leaned against his mangled staff as he stared out to the far horizon with an outlying gaze; as his luminous emerald eyes glanced out amongst the spouting hilltops and cliff faces that jutted out the ominous sea of clouds the panda's mind was elsewhere. He subconsciously reached into the pocket of his new set of clothing- a pair of crimson auburn pants with matching waistcoat, with red fillings around the rims, that loosely hung around his broad shoulders- fishing his paw around in the pocket of the inside of his small jacket, pulling out a tiny box.

Po slowly brought his gaze from the nightly watch to the petite object sat in the middle of his large paw. Using his thumb he gradually opened the hatch of the container and sighed as he stared down on the golden ring sitting perfectly erect. The high moon cast down on the halo-shaped jewellery, gleaming against its soothingly curved surface. Po's orbs danced, mystified by the trinket, as if in a trance.

He lightly brushed the side of his thumb against the metal exterior; it was still warm from being close to his body.

He remembered the day he discretely bought the ring down in the Valley. The thought and moral of the accessory had been on Po's mind for a long time; about an entire year would be more precise, he had been searching for the true moment, but what would it be if he didn't have the right ring. And then he found it, catching his eye among many at a simple stand. And yet, out of all the fabulous and luscious trinkets with emeralds, gems and rubies that the panda saw the one that Po held in his paw right now, was the only ring that felt...just.

A happy smile found its way to Po's lips.

A sound from behind caught the panda's attention with a twitch of his small ear, Po quickly snapped the box shut and pushed it deep into the pocket of his coat as he turned to find the very feline Master of his thoughts slowly making her way up the stone steps to him.

Po gave a welcoming smile. "Evening sleeping beauty."

Tigress returned the smile equally. "Evening, Po. I, uh, I'm not intruding am I?"

"Of course not." He said, then lowering a suspicious eyebrow. "Why would you think that?"

"It's just I've noticed that you've been coming here a lot lately. You're staying up longer into the night, and when you're awake you seem completely tired. Don't think I haven't noticed Po." Tigress crossed her arms as she leaned against the bark of the peach tree. "Something on your mind?"

Po's lips were tight and straight. "Nothing for you to worry about, Tigress. I'm fine."

"You don't look it."

Po finally grinned. "I guess I need more work on being discrete." He then rose up his staff and pointed the butt in Tigress' direction. "But you need a little help too, Tigress. I don't mean to sound like Shifu but you seem really distracted lately, I mean...today I actually beat you in a sparring match- which by the way was still completely - but that has to a multiple of times now that _I've_ been able to defeat you." The panda stepped closer to Tigress and placed a large paw on her strong shoulders. "So the real question is there something on _your_ mind?"

Tigress bit her lip, her thoughts replaying all the panda had said. His words were comforting and asking for an invitation for her to speak whatever she wished, she knew Po would listen. It was part of his kind-hearted aura that had attracted her to him in the first place. And yet, with all the softness in his eyes and the yearning for her to pour her heart out, Tigress shook her head.

She didn't look into Po's eyes, something forced her not to. "N-no, Po, I'm good." Tigress strained a sapped smile and brought up her paw as she mirrored Po's position and cupped his cheek. The extra strands of fur that had begun to grow off the panda's form were signs of him moving away from his childlike demeanour to adopting the striking appearance of a somewhat grizzlier bear- a true man.

But Tigress could still see the panda she fell in love with over a year ago. His eyes were hard like stone but his little lost-boy smile reminded Tigress of the cub inside. She thought back to the one painting that Po had done of her, pinned against his- _their_ room. It had taken a few months and a lot of persuading, but Shifu eventually relinquished the rule of her and Po's sleeping separate. They wasted no time in moving Tigress personal belongings into Po's room – which evidentially wasn't much.

"Thank you for caring though, Po."

Po spread his arms and Tigress sunk close to his chest, feeling the pliability of his monochromatic fur on her cheek. "What kind of person would I be if I didn't care about you, or Shifu and the rest of the Five. I'm born to care for people." Po then paused. "Unless they try to kill me, that is."

Tigress chuckled. "Touché"

For a moment of content bliss the pair stood in the shade of the Sacred Peach Tree, holding each other close; Po repeatedly stroked the small of Tigress' back. The feline purred in pleasure at the touch, she dug her head lower into Po's chest, nuzzling him. The panda stared down on Tigress' bare neck, noticing the many scars dotting her shoulder. It was only when Tigress noticed the deep exhale of Po's warm breath on her head fur that she pulled back and looked up at him with questioning eyes.

"What's wrong?"

Po's face was grim as he lifted up his arm and stepped out into the moonlight, Tigress followed to his side. She trailed Po's solemn gaze down to his forearm where she spotted the three claw marks that ran parallel down from his elbow to the wrist, just showing underneath the black of his fur. Tigress' glowing eyes glanced up to Po's face. He seemed distant, oblivious to her presence. Tigress snapped back down to the panda's forearm, thinking back to how the both of them had got stuck hanging over the great expanse above the Thread of Hope. The way that she had caught Po's fall in time to grasp his arm, evidentially having to sink her razor claws into his skin to take a firm grasp. Then the most horrifying moment of Tigress' life, when Po had purposefully slipped through her grasp, the memory of that fateful day was still burned deep inside her mind.

But he had lived through it, and she was thankful for that.

Tigress lightly rose up her paw and settled it over the marks on Po's arm, bringing him back from his inner shell of despair and sadness The panda blinked a few times and stared down at Tigress' arm before looking up to her face, she was wearing a consoling grin. Po beamed back in gratitude.

"Don't doubt yourself, Po." Tigress spoke up. "I know that you told me you did, in the village of Xi'an, but I have never once seen uncertainty in your eyes or smile. You're a strong person, Po. I can actually say stronger than me, or the Five or even Shifu." She took a firmer grasp of Po's arm and stepped closer, looking up into his jade eyes, and placing a flat paw against his chest- the beat of his heart lightly thumping against her pad. "It may not be with your muscles, but with your mind and your heart you are the most strongest, courageous and kind-hearted than any of us could be."

Po smiled significantly as he quickly snatched Tigress by the waist with his paw holding the staff and locked her soft lips with his own. The feline was caught off guard, and naturally would have thrown him over the edge without a second thought but with having gotten used to his ways, and he for her own, Tigress settled into it as she laced her arms around his large neck.

They separated for air, staring into each other's orbs with affection in the panda's locked embrace.

Po then shuddered in the feline's grip, his face dropped and he looked absently from her. Tigress lowered an eyebrow in confusion as he pulled away. "Po?"

Turning back to Tigress. "S-sorry, sorry, just a little chill, is all."

She was unconvinced. "Everything okay?"

"No...No, actually." Po sighed. "I've got this feeling that something bad is going to happen."

Tigress nodded. "I don't blame you, when Fu arrived I couldn't help but think about Shen. Nothing we can do at the moment, she's completely worn out. The cub's no different; he looks frightened out of his fur. Good thing they're both resting up in the dormitories."

Po bobbed his head before his eyes grew a little as a thought came to mind. "You don't think something's happened to Shen, I noticed a few specks of blood on the back of Fu's night gown. She didn't looked to have any cuts or gashes, nor did her cub, so-" Po suddenly stopped and his ear twitched. "Hmm, anyway, so the blood had to have come from Shen. It's the only possible idea I've got. Either that or it's from a ba-" The panda's round ear twitched again, Po snapped his head back to the outsized silhouette of the Jade Palace; his eyes jerking from point to point as he scanned every outline of the Grand Palace.

Tigress noticed the serious gaze in Po's eyes, seeing the way they stabbed the night air with an indomitable glare. Tigress had acted in such a fashion many times before; Po was searching for someone or something. She stepped close to the panda and whispered with creased eyebrows. "What's wrong, Po?"

The panda's claw snapped up, respectively asking for silence as he dared not to take his eyes away from the Palace. Soon, very slowly, Po tipped the claw forward and outstretched his arm. "There." He said in a hush. "Right there." Tigress looked down the length of Po's forearm to where his claw indicated. At first she could see nothing but the slim rooftops. Though after a few seconds a form stood up and moved: more appeared and followed the leader, slipping along the darkened outline of the rooftop before dipping in to the dark and disappearing from Po and Tigress' view.

"What was that?" She asked.

"Not something good, that's for sure." Po grimly replied.

Another question. "What were they doing?"

Po took a couple steps to the stone steps leading up to the Sacred Peach Tree, his staff giving a hollow clunk every time it slapped the flooring. His diamond eyes scrutinising, running the direction that the shadows were heading in his mind like a repeating film.

"I think they're heading for the dormitories. " He eventually answered.

Tigress focused her eyes on the floor, her mind trying to unravel the questions in her head. "Why head there? There's nothing in the dorms to steal...unless they're not here to take possessions, but to-" The feline's eyes widened to the size of the glowing moon that hung above her head. "Fu!" She turned to acknowledge Po of the shadows' intentions.

The panda was already rushing for the dormitories.

* * *

The Palace dormitories were quiet and calm.

The residents were in their separate rooms, peacefully dreaming. They were utterly unconscious to the moving forms that noiselessly crept and crawled on the wooden rafters overhead, those were just a small contingent of the assassins. Individuals who had little climbing abilities snuck with their backs to the rise paper thin walls, down the hallway that separated the bedrooms. All weapons were drawn, there were two to a room: one on the rafters with their daggers poised to strike and those silently opening the doors.

All sets of eyes burned wildly within the contents of the darkened rooms.

For days they had followed the lynx and her cub, trailing her in the shadows and waiting to the point where they believed she would collapse of exhaustion, but her going all the way to the Valley Peace and literally dropping on the entrance floor of the Jade Palace proved to these men that Fu was not a target to take lightly.

But the feline was tired, her efforts drained from endless days of running, she was sound asleep. And even better, the hybrid cub was cured right up in the crook of her sleeping form. The figure, a fox, perched atop the rafters of her room had decided to take them out alone. Why, because he was the most skilled out of all of them, and he wanted this victory all for himself. If the others inhabitants were to wake or be slaughtered by the ambush, it didn't matter, the assassins' task would be complete.

Fu and her cub would be dead.

With eyes as hollow and lifeless as a tomb, the sly creature looked up to the other hunched assassins and gave a stiff nod. They all replied mutely in the same way, passing the silent message down to their comrades before sinking into the rooms and off the banisters.

But before those in the hallway could even put a foot inside the multitude of bedrooms all eyes turned to the end of the corridor to see a large furry panda with hard diamond eyes of green and a mangled walking staff in paw, growling deeply, poised with the stick held up behind him. He was soon accompanied by a striking feline with fiery eyes. Her fangs were bare, glowing a pure white in the shade.

Po looked on the many creatures that littered the hallway of his friends' bedrooms, coyly smiling as he said. "Evening, boys. Sorry to stop you, but visiting times are up." Before the killers could open their mouths to say a word Po gave out a long yelp in means of waking and warning his friends.

"_**AMBUSH!" **_

The murderers, of which were still in the hallway at the time, ground their teeth together and charged for Po and Tigress- their cover blown. The pair smiled as the assassins moved their way; Po took the section on the right, swinging his staff and catching a boar on the top of his head- he crumpled to the floor, two more took his place. Tigress took the left, giving a quick punch to the closet killer; he collapsed to the floor with a crushed windpipe. They quickly switched sides and struck out at the remaining murderers. Not accounting for the ones who had slipped into the Five's rooms.

The fox inside Fu's room was standing by her bedside at the time of the call, if given a few more second both the lynx and her cub would have died in their sleep and the only remnants being a blood stained dagger in either one of their chests. But the call of the ambush had caught the fox off guard, causing him to become slightly bewildered by the sudden fail in his plan.

Little Hao had been asleep, curled up against the warmth of his mother when he was awoken by a loud alarming call from outside in the hallway, his multi-coloured eyes fluttered open and bulged when he noticed the fox standing with a small blade raised high, ready to strike down for the kill. Instincts kicked in, his mother was still too tired- but was beginning to stir- Hao flipped to all fours on the bed and pounced on the adversary, sending them both crashing to the floor and through the paper-thin door of their room. The young cub swiped and slashed at the assassin, his adversary trying to jab him with the knife point.

At the other end of the corridor Po, Tigress and the still standing assassins paused to look at the tussle between the little lynx/ lion hybrid and the fox leader.

"Hao!" Po cried. Not distracted for too long, he gave a martial cry- of some sort- and kicked one of the attacker sin the groin ahead of swinging his staff and clubbing him in the neck. That was the signal for the fierce scrap to begin once more in the narrow walkway.

As the numbers of the assassin's began to dwindle, Tigress took her last opponent by slamming his cheeks, brining him into a state of disarray before sweeping a kick straight to his crotch. The creature hollowed as he crumpled to his knees, clutching his groin- holding a face that was close to the one Po made on his first day in the obstacle course. Tigress finished his suffering with a sharp open palm strike across his head, he toppled sideways- silent.

Po's final adversary charged at him with a small mace but the panda knocked his limb aside with the staff before wrapping a large arm around the animal's neck. He jerked and twisted under Po's grasp but the panda's weight overpowered him, he wouldn't let go.

It was then there came a crowd of cries from each of the bedrooms. Tigress, Po, Hao and the fox looked at each door just as the bodies of the assassins, which had snuck in, shot through the rice paper and plastered against the walls opposite, they all slid down the wooden surfaces, limp and lifeless.

The Five all exited their rooms, huffing and puffing.

"What's going on here?" Crane asked.

Po gave a sighing smile of relief. "Just a little midnight disturbance is all." He gave a quick yank of his arm still locked on the assassin, the body went loose. Po dropped the dead figure to the floor with little concern. "Good to see you're okay though." He beamed to Crane.

"I wouldn't say so." The vile hiss of the fox leader piped in. The Kung Fu Masters turned their attention to the end of the hall, finding the fox standing tall. Wrapped close to his chest was little Hao, the cub was shaking in fright and terror.

Po noticed the knife in the killer's other paw. "Take it easy now." He said.

The fox gave a toothy grin. "Oh, I'm always easy. That's why I'm the best." He snapped up the blade of the dagger to Hao's throat, the cub craned his neck to move away from the cold touch of the weapon against his throat. His eyes became glassy with tears and his small lip trembled. The Five and Po took a subconscious step forward, but the fox moved the blade closer. They all got the message, remaining where they were. "You know it's such a shame, this kid has a lot of spunk in him." He glanced down to Hao plastered against his chest and tilted his head down to nuzzle the hybrid. Looking up though his eyebrows he sneered. "Just like his father."

Po's limits had been pushed a step at the meaning of Shen, Tigress was the same right beside him. The panda growled and slammed his staff into the panelled floor, baring his teeth. Tigress' tail twitched and her claws gradually unsheathed themselves as she pierced the fox with a menacing glare- the fox successfully 'hmped' to himself. "What do you want? Who are you working?" Po barked, slamming the butt of his stick harder into the wood.

The assassin gave a wave of his finger and shook his head slowly from side to side. "Now, now, that'll just ruin all the fun. I've just come along to make sure daddy plays nice." The fox chuckled at his own little joke. "And I'm going to finish the- _Argh!_"

The fox gave screeching howl as his entire body arched forward and up, he stood on his toes, letting go of Hao. The cub whimpered as he hit the floor shuffled away from the assassin. Everyone looked up to see blood convulsing from the corner of the fox's mouth. He dropped the knife as the point of a blade broke through his ribs with a sickening crack. More blood gurgled from his mouth as a shadow peered out from behind.

"Don't. You. Touch. Him!" A feminine voice hissed into his ear, giving a grunt she forced the blade further through his chest before pulling it out with one tug. The fox clutched his upper body and fell to his knees. The figure towering over him was Fu, Shen's heavy sword in her paw; it was shaking slightly from the adrenaline.

The assassin went into a fit of coughs, spraying blood everywhere. Hao cowered as the body dropped mere inches from his feet, but it was still not dead. The killer soon began to laugh darkly through crimson teeth as he looked up to Po and Tigress. "This isn't...over. We will...have our victory." He went into another spasm of coughs. "We will rise from the ashes! We are _invincible!_" He burbled before chuckling to himself, soon going silent and very still. His head leaned against the floor as a pool of blood grew around his body.

There was silence in the dorms.

After a few minutes of hush, the rush of the fight left Fu; she dropped the sword in her paw and collapsed to her knees. Tears poured from her bloodshot eyes. Hao moved around the dead fox and ran to his mother, wrapping his arms around her body. "Mama!" He sobbed. Fu sighed between sobs as cuddled her son tightly, cooing him.

"Oh, Hao, thank goodness you're safe!"

"I am, Mama. I am."

As mother and son shared their moment of being able to live in each other's company once more, the Five and Po looked down at the fox's body and then to each other. Most attention was drawn to Tigress and Po.

Mantis was the first to break the silence of the group. "I didn't like the sound of that."

Viper shivered as she glanced once more to the fox. "What did he mean 'we will rise from the ashes'?" She looked at Tigress and Po; both seemed to be lost in their own little world. "Po, Tigress?"

The panda was the first to break his daze. He blinked "I...I don't know. I just don't know." It was a half lie.

Monkey stepped forward with a hopeful glint in his eyes. "Maybe Shifu would know."

Everyone nodded in agreement but quickly stopped.

"Shifu!"

* * *

Po, Tigress, Crane and Monkey jostled for the Sacred Hall of Warriors. Viper and Mantis stayed with Fu and Hao to keep them safe encase of anymore attackers lurked in the shadows.

The group leapt, more than ran, up the steps- three at a time- as they came to the Grand Hall entrance. It was as they got to the large doors that they opened before anyone of them got close enough to touch the handles. The Kung Fu Masters were stunned for a minute but quickly stepped back as they saw Shifu emerging from the darkness of the Hall.

They said nothing as he stomped past with a face that seemed darker and more ferocious than anything any of them had ever seen. His fur was ruffled, ears drawn flat against his head. A small gash and a trickle of blood snaked its way down the side of his white fur from his forehead. The group's attention was drawn to the form in the Grand Master's bony hand, being dragged across the stone floor by the neck. It was a heron covered in snow white feathers; limp but not dead- his eyes were wide open and moving. Po and Tigress dissected the avian with powerful stares. More assassins. Po's paw tightened on his staff as he followed on after Shifu and the paralysed heron.

Shifu's anger burned and boiled hotter than lava erupting from a volcano. His fingers were like a vice on the heron's neck, he had to mentally remind himself that he needed this bird alive. The others had already been dealt with.

He was conscious that his students were following.

He did not care.

Finally reaching the place he wanted to be, Shifu effortlessly hauled the limp avian's body up the stone steps leading to the Sacred Peach Tree. Po was close behind, Tigress following on. Crane and Monkey held back a bit, a few steps down from the top, afraid of the look in Shifu's eyes. It was another side of their Master they had not seen, not in a long while at least.

Shifu roughly slumped the heron against the roots of the Peach Tree and walked on to the rocky edge of the mountain, stopping to calmly place his hands behind his back. Po and Tigress positioned themselves so that they were facing the heron opposite from the tree: disgust, anger and rage ablaze in their eyes. They said nothing; it was not for them to speak.

However, they both did secretly wish to pummel the assassin to death.

Maybe Shifu would let them.

The Grand Master took a deep breath and looked over his shoulder at the tree with the heron lying against it. "I have every reason to throw you over the edge, paralysed!" He growled, taking another deep breath to clam himself. He turned to the avian. "But I'm not going to do that. Instead, I'm going to ask you three simple questions. Try lying to me and things will only get worse for you." The unmoveable enemy looked back at him with horrified eyes. The red panda limped his way to the tree and stared deeply into the heron's eyes. "You came here to kill a lynx and her cub, is this true?"

The white feathered heron nodded sharply and without delay.

"Good." Shifu replied. "And now onto the second question: who was it that sent you?"

It was here that the heron hesitated, opening his long beak to say but clamped it shut with scepticism. He contemplated whether to tell the warrior the truth or lie- either way he knew it wasn't going to end well. Shifu's bushy eyebrows furrowed and his sapphire eyes went sinister, his patience wavering. He latched out a small but strong hand and took hold of the enemy's neck, cutting off the air to his lungs. If the assassin could move his body he would have tried to pry Shifu's hands away, but with his body being paralysed from the shoulders down, there was little the bird could do but cough and gulp for air.

It was torture; the bird's eyes began to roll into the back of his head. Monkey and Crane winced. Po and Tigress did not flinch a bit.

"J-Ja...Jai Wu" The assassin managed to gasp. "Jai...Wu!"

Shifu did not loosen his hold but leaned in close to the avian's beak, he wasn't going to let this bird of easily. "Where. Is. She?" He growled with grinding teeth that could have broken if any more pressure was added.

"Dra...Dra..." The heron stuttered.

"Spit it out!" Tigress barked, unable to hold back her aggravation any longer. Po took a supple grip of her arm to stop her from swiping the killer. But it would have been better to let Tigress have her way, for the next two words that forced their way out the avian's long neck made the world come to a stop.

"_Dragon's...Pass_."

All limits of the Grand Master Shifu's restrain had been shattered; tightening the muscles in his arm and hand Shifu looked away and closed his eyes as he took a tighter hold of the assassin's neck. The sound of choking reached his large pinned-down ears. With a sharp twist of his wrist there was a muffled crunch. The avian became lifeless- his neck snapped in two.

Po's heart stopped for a second or two. His legs went from sturdy as marble pillars to being filled with water, he tried to stand up straight by leaning on his staff but the end slipped on the uneven stone surface. The panda fell to the floor with a thump in both his body and his heart. He brought up a paw to his neck where the deep scar hid beneath his overgrowing black fur.

Tigress went cold and pale, the colour leaving her body. Thoughts of Chen Hue Leigh's teeth sinking into her shoulder returning like an unstoppable flood. The pain, though only in her mind, felt deep and agonising in her neck. The cold sensation of when she was so close to death swelled within her body. A paw snaked its way up to her shoulder, feeling underneath her collar to the dips and bumps of the marks.

Crane and Monkey were silent; they did not need to say a word. They too, knew of the events that took place in the mountain plains.

Tears forced their way to Shifu's azure orbs, a lump pricked at his throat. He let go of the dead assassin's neck with a trembling hand. He always knew the past had ways of catching up to the present. How he now wished that wasn't true. The Grand Master closed his eyes tighter and tried to forget everything of tonight, but it would not go away. It couldn't be forgotten, not now. Not after those two words.

Irony, what a cruel hand it played.


	6. This is Politics?

Is Love Safe?

Chapter Six- This is Politics?

Jing Shen, Chen Hue Leigh, Fu and Hao (c) mine

* * *

The Jade Palace had never been so ghostly and still, illuminated in a white hue of the fully blooming midnight Moon. Tigress lit up a match, cupping it with her paw as she raised it up to the nearest lantern and set alight the wick of the candle inside. A section of the kitchen became illuminated; she closed the glass door and moved to the next one. Soon the entire room was brightly lit, but even in the dancing light of the glowing flames the spirit coming off those situated around the square table in the middle was as dreary and cold as the oncoming autumn night air outside.

Blowing out the flame and tossing the used match into the small cooking stove Tigress turned and joined her friends at the table. She twisted the wooden chair aside to the table and sat with her back hunched, head buried deep into her paws, adopting the position of her companions. Fu sat at the opposite end, closest to the entrance of the kitchen. Situated on the lap of her bloodied night gown, wrapped tightly in her grasp with a crushing embrace was a still shaken-up Hao. Everyone's gazes were outlying and lost; it was like waking up from a bad dream just to step into the true nightmare.

Po's expression was grim and fear-filled, his eyes had lost their shine and the little-lost boy smile had fully vanished from his muzzle, as if it was slapped off. He blinked a few times and let his hands fall from his temples onto the wooden table. Po turned his head to the kitchen doorway where Shifu's small form leaned pressed up against the stilt of the doors, his ears were drawn down against his head.

Po sighed greatly. He got up from his seat and walked over to the stove, it was warm against his fur. But, subconsciously, Po was still deeply moved by tonight's events that he did not feel the heat of the flames behind their metal cage. Spreading his paws on either side of the stove and leaning hunching forward he whispered openly. "Anybody want some tea?" He was already reaching to the cupboard overhead and brought out a small metal kettle.

He looked over his shoulder and repeated the question when nobody answered. After a few seconds of silence Crane reached up and pulled his straw hat off his head, placing it on the table he was the first to answer. "N-no, thank you, Po."

Viper followed on. "I'm fine, thanks."

Then Monkey found his voice. "I'm good."

Mantis shook his head. "No."

Soon everyone rejected the panda's offering of the hot brew. Po's lips tightened as he hung his head over the stove. Silence once again fell of the kitchen, apart from the low whistle of the boiling kettle on the flames. Po was still as his jade eyes stared down to the stove, but his mind saw other things. He saw himself back up in the Dragon's Pass, on all fours and looking down on Tigress' bloodied, mangled body beneath him: the essence of life ebbing away from her eyes, growing grey and pale.

The snow, how it glowed a shimmering red as the blood from Tigress' body drained out onto the pure white surface, tainting it with red death. And then there was Chen, crouched like Po a small distance away, his razor teeth crimson from where he had bit down onto Tigress with wicked and malicious doing. Steel blue eyes ablaze in a feral triumph.

The panda had almost lost Tigress once; there was no way in the eternal plains of Heaven or the fiery depths of Hell he was going to risk it all over again.

Po's claws unsheathed as he closed his eyes to block out the images of the past, they raked into the wood with a crackling groan as he tightened the muscles in his paws and tried to close them on the flat surface. Po's long fur bristled slightly, his teeth grinding. Unable to hold in the wave of emotions in any longer, Po gave out a cry of anguish- seeing Tigress' dead body- as he brushed his paw across the stove, knocking the kettle aside where it smashed into the wall and fell as a crumpled piece of scrap. He furthermore cleared all remaining apparatus off the counter to the floor, China bowls and cups broke on contact, lying in shards and pieces on the floor.

The sudden outburst from Po had jolted everyone completely back into reality. Tigress jumped up to her feet, looking at Po as he smashed the counter side. Shifu's ears were upright and his sapphire orbs were on the panda instantly. Fu instinctively moved from her seat and backed away into the furthest corner from Po, Hao protectively hidden behind her legs. Tigress couldn't bear to see Po in such a manner, there had only be a few times in the past when the panda had snapped into a rage-powered fit of violence, but it was over a year ago.

Not again.

Tigress moved fast, taking a firm hold of Po's arm but the panda jerked it out of her grasp. Crane and Shifu moved in to help, seeing where this was going, they all launched themselves at Po. Tigress took Po into a headlock restricting his arms to above his head. Crane moved infront of Po and pushed him away from the stove, being careful not to get kicked or stricken during the process. Shifu's movement was the swiftest, sweeping Po's small legs from underneath him. The result ended with Tigress, Crane and Po all falling to the floor with a thud. Po seemed to calm down as he sat perched on his backside, Tigress sitting behind him and Crane getting back to his feet. The avian took his seat and donned his hat once more.

At first the panda seemed dazed, sitting on the floor, unsure to make of where he was or what just happened, he just sat there. But then the tears started to come, his lip trembled and he brought his knees close to his chest as he hid his face between them. Moans of distress and grief rippled from his throat.

Everyone was stunned; it seemed Po's emotions were all out-of-wack. One moment he was depressed, then monstrously violent as a rogue bear and finally breaking down into tears like a little child getting a major scorning. As strange it appeared to be to general eyes, all the Kung Fu Masters understood the reasons for Po's outbreak.

Shifu turned away and sunk back down into the realm of his own mind, hands pensively laid atop one another behind his back.

Seeing that the situation had settled down, Fu stepped out from the corner with Hao clutching her night robe. Both mother and cub craned their necks as they walked around the table to get a better look at Po. It was rare to see a Kung Fu Master break down into tears, but to see the famed Dragon Warrior do it was something next to meeting the Emperor. Fu watched with sympathy as the panda was comforted by Tigress' arms around his shoulders, her head resting on the back of his neck. She lightly whispered soft hushes into his ear.

It was as Tigress leaned her head on Po's back that the lynx noticed the scars marking her neck. For causes unknown the lynx couldn't help but feel a shiver run up her spine, but she understood how the scars came to be. "M...Master Po?" Fu asked tentatively.

It was then Po's head pulled out from between his knees, he looked up to Fu with glassy emerald eyes, bloodshot from the salty tears. As his gaze fell on the feline, his green globes seemed to harden like gems, piercing her. Po slowly got to his feet, Tigress followed suit. The Kung Fu feline noticed Po's balled fists, with a dash of her eyes, she looked up to his face as she walked beside him. Po's glare was cold and unyielding. "You..." He whispered. He rose up a slightly shaking paw and pointed a razor claw in Fu's direction. "You're the cause of this!" He hissed. "All year long things have gone well here, and then you come along and disaster strikes!" All eyes turned to the moment shared between Fu and Po. Shifu was still within the depths of his subliminal thoughts. The lynx backed up a bit, pushing Hao behind her again.

"Master Po, I...I assure you." Her voice was shaken. "I had no idea how those people found me, I travelled here because Sh-"

"_DON'T!" _Po bellowed. This caught Shifu's attention; the red panda turned and was watching with enquiring eyes. Tigress placed a light paw on Po's shoulder; the panda was oblivious to the touch. "This problem is your own, not mine. I risked my life and the life of my friends travelling into those mountains once before. I do not intend to risk it all again. Not for me, not for you, your cub or your boyfriend!"

Tigress looked over Po's shoulder to Fu. The others did the same, noticing a flush come upon the lynx's features. Her lips curled up in snarl and her posture straightened, she took a courageous step forward. "That is my husband you're talking about!" Fu sneered, rising up a claw. "He said that you were a kind soul who would give everything up to help your friends and those in need. He told me all about you went through in those mountains. I know of the pains and troubles you experienced and I'm sorry for that." Fu's face softened a little, her purple eyes glanced to Tigress at Po's side and then back to the panda's face. "He told me how you almost lost her, that you'd do anything to hold her in your arms once more." Fu stuck up her nose to the panda and 'humped' openly. Her violet eyes were solid like steel. "What a lie he spoke of you. You're no hero, you're a _coward!_"

Everyone's eyes widened. Tigress' lips pursed, her paw tightening on Po's shoulder. Shifu's azure orbs snapped between Fu and Po.

Po's fur bristled visibly, his chest heaved deep breathes. His blood boiled, eyes glowing with a fire yearned on behind their gem coloured casings. Shifu's old bones ached with a warning; he had seen that specific look in the panda's eyes in the past.

With his anger rising exceptionally, Po strode forward and out of Tigress' grasp. Fu saw the look in Po's eyes as he moved her direction with meaning intentions, the lynx cowered back as Po rose up a paw- ready to strike her across the cheek with his knife-like claws. Tigress and Shifu moved in to intercept the panda's action but someone else was quick to beat them to it, thrusting Po away with a cry of fear and resentment.

"Leave my Mama alone!" Hao shouted at the top of his voice as he ran around his mother's legs and pushed Po's stomach back with his full being. Po stumbled back a few paces into Tigress' arms once more. "Leave her alone!" Hao cried, tears forming in his eyes.

And it was in those tears that the anger, hatred and frustration left Po's eyes. His face went limp as if waking from a dream. He stared down to the cub with stunned eyes. The panda brought up his paws and looked at them, glancing over the tape wrapped around his hefty claws and wrists with unbelieving globes. His stare switched to Hao, then Shifu. The red panda was just as amazed with the hybrid youngling as the others situated in the room. Po glanced finally to Fu, she was leaning against the stove with clamping claws; her violet eyes were tender and fragile, swallowed up in tears of loss and hurt.

"I...I'm sorry." The panda managed to finally find his breath. It was light, just above a murmur. He looked back down to Hao and then Fu once more. "I'm sorry." Realizing the possible outcome of his actions, Po ran from Tigress' touch. Hao guarded his mother, who cowered at the fear of another hit attempt; only to watch as he moved passed them both. With his large frame moving in such a hurry Po nudged the table and toppled over a chair as he ran for the doorway, the broken China sets crunching underneath the extra weight. Within seconds Po's monochromatic frame had disappeared down the hallway, his footsteps growing lighter as the distance increased.

Tigress moved to run after the panda but Shifu's bony hand on her abdomen stopped her tracks. She looked down at him with pleading eyes. Shifu shook his head in denial. He removed his nimble hand and looked up over to the table. Hao had let his guard down and turned to comfort his mother, she bent down for his welcoming hug. Reaching down, Shifu took the long malformed shape that was Po's walking staff in hand and turned to Fu. The lynx looked at him with tear strained eyes; she separated from her son and wiped her purple orbs.

Shifu held out the long stick with a single hand, Fu's eyes loomed over the staff before moving up to meet his. The Grand Master gave an encouraging smile. "Talk to him. He needs it." At first Fu shook her head, but Shifu was determined, lightly forcing the staff into her paws. "Think of Hao, think your husband." There was finally a barrier which broke away in Fu's gaze. She looked down to the staff once more that now sat in her paws. She could feel the weight of it, for just a simple walking staff it seemed to have a significant amount to bear.

Taking a deep breath and wiping her eyes dry with the back of her paw; Fu stood to full height and followed in the direction that Po had run off.

* * *

Stepping out from the warmth and into the cold night air was like having hands of ice running all over Fu's body, the feline shivered as she wrapped her slim arms around themselves, holding the walking staff close. She shook the chill off and pressed forward through the illuminated garden paths leading to the edge of the mountainside. It was on one specific path that she took, distinctly smoothened from the predecessors who had tread its stone road many times before in the past, that Fu found herself walking- by memory- to the Sacred Peach Tree.

Having lived at the Jade Palace in her younger years with Shen, Tai Lung, Shifu and Oogway, Fu had searched all the major areas where most residents would slip off to: all but this last place.

The lynx gave released a held back sigh once she found the rotund form of the Dragon Warrior sitting on the rocky edge. Fu slowly made her way up the stone steps to the tree, creeping up on the panda. As she neared closer Fu hiked a slender eyebrow as she watched Po tilt his head to the side and slap his temple, like when someone wanted to get droplets of water out of their ear.

"What are you doing?" She asked.

Po's entire body twisted round to face her, his face was surprised at first but soon grew solemn as he turned back around and looked to the floor. "Something a coward would do. I ran away." Po stated grimly.

Fu could tell she had deeply hurt Po. Shen had told her that the panda was a character who could take or create any joke, fight any battle and still manage to come out of it all with a smile on his face. Much of what Shen had told her seemed to be transforming into fairytales as the night progressed on. Still, she didn't want to ruin a friendship- especially one that was close to her husband. She moved closer and outstretched her paw, bending down and laying it out on the stone floor next to Po. "Here's your staff back."

Po's eyes attention turned from the ground and focused on the clouded horizon in the distance. "Thanks."

Silence came over the mountain edge. Po's eyes never left the far out reaches of the land. Fu bit her lip in anxiety as to how she would approach Po. But it seemed the panda sensed her uneasy demeanour, or rather the uneasy shifting of her feet reaching his ears told him all the same.

"Shifu set you after me, didn't he?"

Fu was surprised. "Is it that transparent?"

Po chuckled a little. "Any more transparent and it'd be invisible." His eyes finally averted from the night and turned fully to the lynx. "Listen, Fu." He started, rubbing the back of his neck. It was always hard for Po to talk to girls alone, one of the few traits that held him back from ever having a girlfriend in the past. "I'm sorry for what I may have said back there. It wasn't me who said those things...well it was...but...I mean...it was this..other..." He sighed in misery. "What I'm trying to tell you is that about a year ago, I had this..._condition_ where I was unable to control my emotions."

Fu nodded in understanding. She took a seat next to the panda. "You went feral."

"Shen tell you that?" He asked, already expecting Fu to bob her head. She nodded. "Well, yeah, I went feral. I thought that I had lost it when we were fighting up in the Dragon's Pass but it seems to be coming back. So for whatever reason, I don't know, I think I may be slipping back into that state again."

Fu wrapped her legs close to her chest as she looked at Po with interesting violet eyes. "What was it like?"

"Going feral?" Po asked back. Fu nodded her head again. "Well there's not really much I can tell you other than just flashes of memories. There were moments when I was able to...to drive my anger and hatred towards my opponent. But the one point, the one moment in that fight where I had complete control over my feral self..." Po's voice dimmed into nothing as he gained interest on the ground once again.

Fu saw Po's eyebrows hike and shake as he tried to fight back the oncoming tears. She reached over and settled a gentle paw on his arm, it was then she felt the three claw marks running up from his wrist to his forearm. Fu instinctively wanted to retract her paw at the feeling but she pushed her skittishness and kept it there. The connection was enough to push Po onwards after he wiped his eyes.

"Tigress, she got hurt bad. She was losing a lot of blood. I thought she was going to die; it was her that forced me to go the extra ten miles and finish the job."

"I saw the marks on her neck." Fu added. "Shen told me that a wolf named Chen Hue Leigh bit down on her!"

Po nodded with a stiff head and upper lip. "That's the guy. Once I saw what he did to Tigress I wasted no time in tearing him apart, in some sense that was literal." There was a brief flash in Po's mind as he saw the scrap body that was Chen, claws and bite marks littering his body and covered in blood from the large chunk missing from his throat where Po had torn the skin away. He sighed through his nose. "Those memories will remain with both her and me forever. A good reminder to never to return to the Dragon's Pass. I guess you can call me a coward; the reason why I don't want to go back is because I'm afraid I'll lose another life along the way. I couldn't go through with that again." Po patted his chest. "And now with this feral state coming back, if anything bad were to happen I believe I'll go back into being ravage and break all Hell out."

Fu had listened with un-interrupting silence, her ears perked to their upright position as Po retold the story of what happened in Dragon's Pass over a year ago. "Wow." She said. "I never knew it had affected you so much, Master Po. Shen was light on some details, I can see why now."

"More than you could ever understand." Po replied with a chuckle. "But I am thankful for Shen- who I must say congratulations, both for getting married and Hao, he's a good kid."

Fu nodded in thanks with a forced smile, but her violet eyes sunk in on themselves as she drew her knees closer and stared down to the floor. "How I would love to hold him again." She spoke aloud. "Just to tell Shen I love him, one more time."

Po turned to Fu and put on a thoughtful face. After a while of sitting placid in such a state, seeing how little and helpless the feline was without the protection of Shen's being to shield her from the dangers- just like how Tigress felt whenever she was taken in Po's arms- the panda got to his feet and took his walking staff in paw. He walked in front of fu. The lynx broke out of her trance an glanced up to Po with tear welding orbs. With a small smile Po outstretched his paw to her.

"Maybe you still can."

Fu switched between looking at Po's paw and his eyes, back and forth. And with a long stare at his large paw, Fu reached out and took hold. She was lifted to her feet. "What are you saying, Master Po?"

"Just Po." He corrected, letting go of her paw. "And I'm saying we need to find you some new clothes. I don't know anything about fashion but I don't think just a night gown is suitable for the harsh conditions that Dragon's Pass has to offer."

Fu's eyes lit up with hope. "You've changed your mind?"

Po gave his signature little-lost boy grin. "You betcha." He turned on his heels with his back to Fu and looked out to the far horizon with wide spread arms, pumping his staff into the air like a general giving the order to his men to charge.

"Look out Dragon's Pass! The Dragon Warrior is coming back for seconds!"


	7. Love melts the Snow

Is Love Safe?

Chapter Seven- Love melts the Snow

Leo, Jai Wu, Hei Xin, Ling, Li and Shen (c) mine

* * *

Morning broke through the sky in a wave of red, gold and blue hues. The Sun moved slow as it crept up over the mountains of the Dragon's Pass just north of the village of Xi'an. The trees of the forest that sat off the camp belonging to Shen's kidnappers were dense with branches and leaves doused in white snow and icicles.

Sun beams broke through the fence of twigs and branches, setting set the snowy floor in a radiating gleam of sparkles. Leo stirred from his slumber as the warmth and light hit his masked face. He growled in annoyance and swiped at the light in means of knocking it aside. The large wolf soon sighed and opened his crimson eyes to the new day. Looking around Leo found himself perched up against the bark of a large trunk; his upper body bare but the lower half covered by a cloak- nothing else.

As his thoughts gathered the great lupine opened his maw and took a long yawn. Stretching his joints, the sound of bones crackling like fireworks bounced off the trees. Leo looked down his body to find his chest marked with small cuts, dried blood trails hanging from the edges of the wounds. With a smirk his thoughts trailed back to the previous night. Him and Jai: her lips pressing on his, legs tangled around his body in a lustrous embrace, claws scratching away at his body as he growled with desire. Their bodies, rocking together, fierce, powerful and ravaging, urging for more and more as she bit down on him in pure bliss of their culmination.

And their coming down from the awe-intense high, holding each other close as they drifted into a serene sleep.

Leo looked to his side where the lioness once laid in his arms, gone. His ears flicked upright and to the side, his eyes following to land on the slender frame that his mind had been dreaming about so merrily. Her back to him as she slipped her pants back on, but the upper body of her frame still naked to the world. Leo's animal behaviour took over, a sly smirk snaking its way onto his lips as he silently got up from the tree. Caring not that his only means of clothing had dropped down to his feet, the ashen wolf made his way closer to the feline, coming so near that he made his move. Swift, and with a seductive growl in his trembling in his throat, Leo wrapped his arms around Jai's waist and immediately cupped her breasts with firm gropes.

She was completely taken by surprise, gasping as his cold, large paws touched her body's sensitive areas. The gasp quickly turned into surrendering mewls of pleasure once she realised her lover's hefty, muscular frame hunching over her own. His teeth biting at the fur and skin on her neck as she reached over and pulled him closer. Her body grinding against his exposed region and the stiffness of his arousal.

"Think you could sneak away without a good morning kiss?" Leo sneered in her ear with a smirk. He buried his head deeper into Jai's shoulder.

The lioness's hips bucked against his. "Had I known you'd been so eager, we would have started all over again." She purred back as her paws came over his own covering her chest ad tightening his grasp- intensifying the sensation.

"I still am." He replied, taking a firmer hold of her breasts at the indication of her soft paws on his.

"I can tell." She chuckled. "I can feel you pressing up against me."

"Think we have time?" He asked, kissing and nuzzling her cheek.

"Oh, I don't think so." The feline laughed as she gave her hips another buck, pushing him away from her. Leo sighed through his nose. Jai turned and snatched up her discarded top, putting it on, much to Leo's disappointment. She saw the expression on his face and walked up to him, placing her paws on his long furry chest. Her pads trailing over the new fresh marks she had left on him from her nails. She looked up into his red globes with a sincere gaze from her own ember eyes. "There will come a time when all it will be is just you and me." She said, sliding her paw up and cupping his cheek, still starring into the orbs behind his white mask. "But that time is not now. There is too much at stake. If the others were to find out about us..."

Leo took her paw and laced his claws with hers. "They won't." His tone was calm and true.

Jai nodded. She reached up on her toes and placed a soft but loving kiss on his lips. Leo was thankful for the kiss. Pulling from her he went over and collected his trousers next to Jai's cloak that they had used as a blanket, tossing it to her as he clothed himself. Jai donned her cape, hood down. There was a pause as both lovers stared at each other from a distance. Messages shared that were not heard or spoken, but understood.

The sound of a twig snapping from behind the pair made Jai yank up her hood. Both warriors spun on their heels and growled at the approaching form that made their way forward. The creature instantly dropped to a knee. "Commander." They addressed.

Jai loosened up as she silently groaned from under her hood. It was a member from the camp- a boar named Li. "What is it?" She hissed in arrogance.

The creature did not rise as he spoke. "The men that you sent out to the Jade Palace, they have not returned. Captain Hei has theorised that they failed in their mission and have been killed during the attack."

Leo looked from the kneeling hog to his Commander with rock hard eyes, giving no emotion as he saw a smile creep its way onto the feline's lips in the shade of her cover. "Excellent." Jai commented. The boar looked up to his leader with questioning eyes. "I did not plan for them to return. They have fulfilled their use in life. If I know my brother's family well, his wife will be heading after us to claim back her husband."

Leo didn't hold back to show a devilish smirk. "They'll walk right into your trap, if they survive that is." Jai's grin broadened a great deal.

The boar was deadpan. "They?"

Jai turned her eyes to the hog. "Why the Kung Fu Masters of the Jade Palace of course. It's time to see if they can live up to the tales I have heard." The lioness said. She looked to Leo and nodded through the shadows of her hood and walked past Li, the boar dipped his head once more as the feline passed and walked towards the camp. He did not notice the fleeting glance that Jai made in his direction with her eyes. Soon Li got to his feet and made to follow Jai but was stopped by Leo's hefty paw on his shoulder.

"Li, my friend." The wolf greeted with a calm smile.

Li bowed his head slightly. "General."

Leo turned the boar so that they were walking in the opposite direction that the Commander had just stridden in. Li looked over his shoulder to the path from where he had just come before staring up to the towering form of the General at his side. "Li how was it you found us?" The wolf asked as he placed his hands masterfully behind his back.

Li's attention was concentrated on the snowy ground that they walked through the forest. "It was Captain Hei; he said that he spotted you going into the woods last night."

Leo pursed his lips, slowing his pace so that he was a small distance behind Li. The boar did not notice. "Is that so?"

Li bobbed his head but his eyes still never left the floor. "Yes, Sir, it was he who sent me to come out and look for you."

"And you came alone?"

"Yes, Sir."

"Good." Leo spoke. "Then you've proven that you are of no longer use to our Commander." Li's pace halted and he turned around to Li with quizzical thoughts. But it was as he turned his head that Leo's paw grasped his throat with a vice-like hold, lifting him into the air and against one of the trees. He reached up to his throat where Leo's hold tightened with every second, trying to pry the paw away but Leo was too strong. "That was not all Hei told you to do, was it?" He growled with bared teeth, glowing as white as the snow on the floor. LI didn't answer so Leo added more force. "Was it!"

The boar managed to shake his head a little, gasping out every word with trouble due to his airways being cut off. "He...He told me to...spy on you and...the Commander."

Leo's white mask tightened into a snarl and his eyes grew rigid. "How long had you spied on us?"

The next words escaping from Li's throat had sealed him his fate in life. "Since...last...night." With quick movements, Leo grasped a dagger from Li's belt and jammed the blade deep into the side of his neck. The hog's eyes widened and his body jerked as blood leaked from the new wound sitting in the place of a jugular vein. His arms flayed out and dragged across Leo's face: the wolf was like stone as he watched the life drain from Li's eyes. He pushed the blade deeper, all the way to the hilt.

By then, the hog's dangling feet had already stopped twitching.

* * *

Jai had reached the edge of the forest and walked into the camp without the slightest glance to any of her subjects. All that came into her path bowed to one knee as she made a forceful stride to the main tent in the centre of the camp. The snow crunching with every step she took. Coming up to the large canopy she spotted Ling sitting on the outside of the curtain entrance, sharpening the blade of his sword with a flat stone. The echoing grinding of metal on stone went on throughout the camp.

At the sight of his Commander, the snow leopard went to one knee. Jai waved him up. "Go get our guest." She ordered. Without delay Ling bowed his head and moved off devoid of a single word. Jai watched him leave before turning and heading inside her tent.

The inside of the canopy was widely spaced with the simple necessities that Jai believed to be compulsory. Her bed was positioned to the right corner of the tent, opposite to the low table on the other side where a set of scrolls were scruffily laid out amongst a set of calligraphy sets. Left of the table in the closest corner to the entrance was a rack of weapons. A set of throwing knives, a long bow, a quiver of scarlet feathered arrows and a medium sized sword laced with golden thread into the carved dragon-faced handle: its jaw open in a beautiful, yet frightening snarl. All of them of her own personal choice, she was highly skilled with each.

And in the last corner was a chest, its lid open and the contents inside trifled with.

Sheets of brown clothes layered the flooring, keeping the ice from soaking through to the feet of those who walked inside. And in the middle was the small table littered with maps and charts, a bottle of alcohol- from the opened chest- set with the cork off positioned to the side. The dark eagle that was Captain Hei Xin stood with his wings spread out over the maps, his ruby eyes scanning every parchment with an encrypting gaze; his mind lost working on the twist of plots and plans for future references.

The avian looked up through his eyebrows as the curtains of the canopy flapped vigorously open with Jai Wu stepping through, a dark glint in her glowing eyes. For a moment the two stared at each other: Jai, through her fiery eyes in anger and Hei up through his night shaded eyebrows above his piercing red globes. Soon, Hei yielded and bowed his head.

"My Lady." He said with a tone that made Jai's eyes turn to slits as she lowered her hood. "You have returned safely."

"Hei, I am to guess that it was you who sent out that scout to look for me?"

The avian looked up and smiled coyly. It made a small shiver run up Jai's spine. "A precaution to make sure that our beloved Commander was unharmed." His attention was drawn back to the charts. "It's a good thing I took charge- though for a short while- in your absence, otherwise we'd never been able to find you"

Jai held back the curling of her lips and growl in her throat as her body slowly made its way around the table, her unsheathed black claws trailing in the wood as she dragged her arm across the table. Hei's eyes followed the claws, her body moving closer to his own. "You know what Hei, you're right." The lioness said as she came to standing next to him. The black eagle stood to full height as he looked to Jai with an arched eyebrow and small grin. "It is a good thing that you took charge whilst I was _missing._" The avian felt her paw secretly slide up his feathery back to the rear of his head. She leaned in close to his ear and, with a sultry voice, said. "It gives me the opportunity... to teach you a lesson!"

The eagle's smirk vanished and his eyes shrunk to dots. Gripping his feathers and moving with unbelievable aggression the lioness pushed Hei's head forward and slammed him down on the table. The wood cracked underneath the force of the blow. Jai retracted Hei's head, a dark liquid of blood dripping down his beak from his forehead. Jai did not hesitate as she dealt a swinging fist straight to his face with her free paw. Hei was knocked off his feet and crashed to the floor with a thud. Deeply heaving breaths in and out of her nostrils, the feline latched a paw onto Hei's beak and dragged him across the tent and out into the open.

All eyes turned to the feline as she dragged Hei out into the snow. With a tug of her arm she threw the eagle a small distance away. The bird groaned as he landed in the cold floor, rolling onto his back and propping himself up. Jai's posture was slightly hunched, arms bent at the elbows. Her teeth were showing and her eyes burned bright, tail swishing violently from side to side. Ling had just arrived with Shen as ordered, escorted by two other felines. His shoulder- where the arrow had struck- was layered with bandages and covered by a tatty brown vest. The panther stared down at Hei then up to Jai with a surprised and awestruck gaze.

"Let this be a lesson to you, Hei, to _all _of you." Jai sneered as she eyed her followers. "There is _no_ rule except mine! Learn it well, for if you so much as give an order without my say-so, I will personally tear your throats apart!" Hei had managed to get to his feet, looking to Jai with a death glare. He was met with the same glance. "Am I clear, _Captain?_"

The bird tightened his beak and nodded. The others were quick to follow.

Shen was still stunned.

Jai's face then quickly softened. Her body straightened as she smoothed out her top and pants. "I'm glad we've come to an understanding. Now, Captain Hei, I have a mission for you." Hei's red eyes narrowed. Jai casually placed her hands behind her back as she paced in the snow, addressing the entire camp. "Last night I sent out men to the Jade Palace in the Valley of Peace, to finish off the job that they had been set when they had captured our newest guest. They took residence amongst the Kung Fu Masters in their...'sanctuary'." Dark chuckles erupted from a few followers. "Those men had one mission: to eliminate the rest of his family..."

"What!" Shen bellowed as he stepped forward with his claws already unsheathed. He was met with the two feline guards holding him back by the shoulders and dealing blows to his stomach. Everyone watched as the feline fell to his knees, arm wrapped around his torso with the other to steady himself. "You said you were after me!" He hissed, looking up to his sister.

Jai stopped pacing and shrugged her shoulders. "I lied." She said nonchalantly, turning back to her audience. More chuckles came from around the camp, Shen growled deeper. "Those men failed in their mission, and they paid for it with their lives. As is the punishment for failure. But now, my brother's wife and son are going to be coming after my brother with all means of taking him away from us. Isn't that cute?" This time laughter echoed from the group. Jai let a malicious smile grin grow on her lips. "But we're not going to let that happen. Hei, take a few archers and all of your men to the Thread of Hope. There you will find Shen's wife and cub. Kill them."

"No!" Shen screamed, being held down by his guards.

"Yes!" Jai mockingly shouted back to the panther.

Hei bobbed his head stiffly in insightful silence. But just doing away with two mere lives was not something that the eagle usually took for his own pleasure; his daily killing rate would range somewhere from ten to over fifty adversaries at once. And those were usually just soldiers or innocent lives. He wanted a proper fight; the Kung Fu Masters would prove something of a joyous challenge. Already treading on dangerous soil he asked. "And what of the others?"

Jai hesitated on the question, her yellow eyes dancing on the snow at her feet, a low winds brushing the frozen leaves of the nearby trees around her. She looked up to the tree line as the bulking form of Leo emerged into the sunlight. He stopped and made eye contact with her. Jai then glanced over to her younger brother kneeling in the snow. His face was hard, but eyes silently pleading.

A thought then came to mind. It was devilish, nasty and the image of it in her head made her giggle with evil significance. She turned back to her tent and leisurely walked to the curtains. Everyone in the camp shared looks of questioning eyes and raised eyebrows. Hei, Leo, Ling and Shen were the only ones who never took their eyes off of the female. Jai stopped outside the entrance of her tent and turned to the camp.

"Throw them into the mist."


	8. No Escape

Is Love Safe?

Chapter Eight- No Escape

Fu, Hao, Hei Xin and Chen (c) are mine.

* * *

Po and Fu were quick to return to the kitchen after their talk at the Sacred Peach.

As they entered the Jade Palace, Po's staff making low clunks as they strolled down the wooden corridor, both feline and panda turned to enter the kitchen. Everyone looked no different than when Po and Fu had both left- glum, depressed and scared of memories past- but as the pair walked in all eyes lit up with hope as they came to rest on the couple.

Tigress removed her face from her paws and got to her feet the minute she heard Po's staff echoing outside the kitchen door. She just stood there, gazing at her lover and the lynx with eyes glowing brighter than the lanterns hanging from the ceiling.

Shifu slowly turned and sighed silently, but with relief, through his nose to see Po and Fu together again.

Hao saw his mother enter and dropped from his seat, running up to the female and lunging into her arms as she bent down. Fu picked her child off the floor and rest him on her hips. It was as they separated that the hybrid's fur bristled a little at the sight of Po, his multi-coloured eyes hardened. Fu caught her son glaring at Po; the panda had also noticed it. "It's okay, Hao. We've made up. We're friends again." Fu cooed.

Hao wasn't convinced, his tail was still swinging with a slight twitch.

Po held up his paw in defence. "I don't blame ya for not believing it, Hao." The cub raised a sceptical eyebrow. "But you Mama and I are friends now; I apologised to her and I'll do the same for you, little buddy. I'm sorry."

Hao looked at his mother. Fu titled her head forward in a nod.

Hao looked back to Po. "You're...not going to hurt my Mama?" Po grinned and nodded. But Hao was still young; his perception of words was only based on such limits. The cub stuck out his little pinkie claw. "You promise?"

All eyes were on Po now. Shifu and the Five knew that Po's promises were true to their words, but if his anger was to get the better of him- and he were to ever turn feral again- his loyalty and trust to the cub would be stretched far. The panda gave a little sigh before chuckling and locking his pinkie claw with Hao's. The cub's face brightened. "I promise, little guy." He finished the deal with a ruffling of the cub's head fur. Hao giggled happily.

The Five and Shifu smiled. Tigress' chest swelled a little at the sight.

Po's emerald eyes soon drifted away from the cub and came to rest on his friends. They had all gotten up from their seats and were standing around the table. The panda made eye contact with everyone of his companions. They all stared back with grins on their faces; Po wished they would still remain once he said what needed to be spoken. The panda sighed as he stepped forward, staff giving a deeply hollow clunk against the floor; his face dropped the good smile and went sombre.

Tigress and Shifu were the first to notice the change in Po's emotion. The rest of the Five were quick to realise it as well. Po took a deep breath of air. "Guys...I know that it's been a year..." The panda went silent for a minute and rubbed the back of his neck in anxiety. "...and things have gotten pretty great since then. They've been really awesome, actually. With what happened those twelve months ago in the Mountain Plains, I dared myself never to go back, not only for my safety...but for you guys as well." Fu's face went plane as she observed Po speak his mind. The Five watched with unfazed orbs. Tigress felt her chest tighten with dread, but holding a sense of pride. She knew what Po was going to say. Shifu was no different, his hands causally resting behind his back. Po lowered his head and pinched his eyes; they were beginning to get sore. "I'm sorry to say that I'm breaking that dare." The panda looked up through his eyebrows, lifting his head high. "I'm going after Fu's husband and I'm bringing him back. You can try to stop me but I _am_ going to get him."

"Po, no..." Viper spoke up, concern in her eyes. "...for all you know Fu's husband and his kidnappers could be long gone."

"Then I'll go after them. I'm not giving up on him, not so easily."

"It could also be a trap, Po." Shifu warned.

"Trap or no trap, I'm going." The panda replied forcefully.

Tigress finally stepped forward, eyebrows furrowed, adopting her old stern expression. "You're not going anywhere!"

"Don't think you can stop me, Tigress!"Po looked down his nose at the feline. "Me and Fu are leaving for the Mountains Plains and th-" He was abruptly silenced with one of Tigress' claws on his lips.

"If you let me finish..." She cut him off. "I said you're not going anywhere, without me." Po's face was stunned.

Mantis hoped onto Tigress' shoulder. "Or me, big guy."

Viper slithered up. "Count me in."

"And us too." Crane grinned as he and Monkey stepped closer to the group. "Couldn't let you have all the fun." He winked.

Everyone looked at Shifu. The red panda sighed deeply and shook his head. "I think you're all crazy, doing this. But you are my students, and you are also my family. And family look out for each other."

Po beamed his signature smile and removed Tigress claw from his lips. "Then it's settled, we leave tomorrow."

"Ahem." Fu coughed loudly. All eyes drifted to the lynx, she held up her bloody robe with a free paw. A slim eyebrow was raised.

Po got the message. "Oh, but, Fu needs no some clothes first."

For the rest of the night, The Furious Five, Po Shifu and Fu prepared for the long trek back to the Northern Regions and the dreaded Dragon's Pass. Tigress was more than welcome to give Fu a set of her own clothes, a red vest and black trousers-very similar to the Kung Fu Master herself- with a cloak for the lynx to call her own. Hao was given a robe by Shifu, seeing as they were both the same size, a small cloak to go with it too.

Fu had convinced Shifu that her son follow on with the voyage, Hao was a quick runner and climber- meaning he could escape from any battle with stupendous haste and break for safety. The Grand Master was resilient but agreed to her terms.

Food was collected, bags were packed and everyone settled down and gathered their rest.

Come by morning, when the sun was still creeping up the far sides of the hills, the Kung Fu Masters and their guests gathered in the Palace arena. They were ready: fully dressed, with their cloaks, backpacks and Po additionally carrying Shen's sword on his back - as favour from Fu that he could not deny- walking staff in paw. At the signal from Shifu, the group marched out of the red entrance of the Palace, down the stone steps, out of the Valley and onwards to their destination with determination and unyielding spirits.

It was late into the morning by the time the group had reached the stone gateway that symbolised the end of the Southern Regions and on the other side, the newly repaired Thread of Hope and the Northern parts of China. The group stopped to take a quick five minute breather after constantly walking all the way from the Valley of Peace.

Hao's feet had begun to get sore halfway to the bridges from the long journey, so Po had generously taken the cub upon his shoulders.

Tigress separated from her resting friends and steadily made her way over to the cliff side. She stopped at the rocky edge and stared out into the snaking trail of wooden bridges with gleaming orange orbs. There was a gathering of fog out on the further stretches. The feline felt a shudder come over her body as she recalled back to the time- one year ago- when they had been ambushed just short of the other side of the chasm by Chen's men. The predicament of her getting stuck, hanging over the gorge with Po in her grasp bound like steel in her memory. She felt another shudder but was suddenly comforted by a warm touch of Po's paw on her shoulder.

She took her eyes off the bridges and looked to the panda, seeing that Hao was still on his shoulder. The panda gave a soft smile as he came to her side and stared out like she had just done. Po chuckled a little after a moment of silence. "How much you willin' to bet there's a trap waiting for us in there?" He, too, thought back to over a year ago.

Tigress followed his gaze. "There's no denying it." She replied. "My guess is that they'll strike near the end."

Po laughed. "It wouldn't be a surprise."

Tigress chuckled with him. "True. But that just makes it all more the fun."

"Is this a game?" Hao's curious voice called from atop of Po.

Both Tigress and Po shared laughter; they had forgotten the cub was present at the time. "In a way, lil' guy, yeah. But you need to be careful here, very careful." Po told as he looked up through his eyebrows.

Hao nodded in comprehension. "I will, but...will you stay with me, Master Po?" The cub asked. "I'm a little scared of going through there."

Po patted Hao's legs latched over his shoulders. "Sure thing, buddy, I'll protect ya. And it's just Po." The panda turned to find the others were getting to their feet. He turned to Tigress. "We'd better get going."

The group lined up before the new bridge, Shifu at the very front: followed by Crane- Fu in the middle-Viper, Monkey and Mantis, Tigress then Po with Hao, now on his own two feet. Po nodded from the rear up to Shifu. The Grand Master replied the same way before gazing out to the crossway. With a deep breath he took the first step onto the wooden bridge, eventually moving off with the rest following in a single file.

Hours went by as the warriors and two lynxes moved along bridge after bridge, soon walking into the wave of deep fog. The stone archway had long faded behind them and was replaced with a wall of heavy mist so thick that Po couldn't see up to Shifu no matter how hard he squinted. Po had no idea how long they kept on moving, changing from crossing to crossing, each separated by small flat platform of mountain tops.

He hoped- they all hoped- that the last, restored bridge would soon come into view.

There then came a silent whoosh of air that caught the Dragon Warrior's attention. It was not like a gust of wind or a breeze.

It was something else.

With a concerning look in his eye, Po halted along the route of the wooden bridge. Knitting his eyebrows, the panda gave a long hardened stare out into the mist surrounding the crossing. His paw loosened up on the staff before grasping it in a crushing clutch. A small wind swept past him, a chilling sense that made the fur strands on his back stand upright- something wasn't right. There came another swift passing of a breeze yet strangely holding and unusual tone and pitch in its song.

His jade eyes pierced the fog with a scrutinizing glare.

Fear of past memories told the panda to look back to the stone columns that were coiled up in the thick ropes of the bridge he now stood upon. He could just see their erect positions on the edge of the flat mountain they had just passed; nothing was there but the way back. He was still too far one side of the bridge in order to see the other side.

There was a slight tugging at his cape. Po looked down to see Hao lightly pulling at the fabric, gaining Po's attention. Glancing down to the cub Po could see Hao staring right back, the fear gleaming in his eyes, tail wrapped around his legs in fright: holding up Po's cape in front of him thinking it as a shield against the terrors of the ashen fog. The poor child was scarred beyond belief. Po gave a reassuring smile and patted the cub's head fur.

"Don't be scared, Hao." His words were comforting. "I'm here." The panda looked ahead to find the others had trailed off without them both. "Come on; let's catch up with the others." He said, keeping Hao close as they moved onwards. But after a few steps both Po and Hao froze, their eyes wide with shock as they felt the entire bridge shudder- like as if it had just gathered a feeling of the cold winds.

Po's free paw snapped away from Hao's body and ensnared the rope to his side for balance. The planks rippled slightly under both Po and the cub's feet, they looked down and then at each other. The chunky rope barriers were still shaking from the sudden jolt, Po's paw shaking with them. Neither panda nor hybrid moved. Those ropes were large, hefty and tight: to make tense fabric like this move in such a fashion, so suddenly, something would to have either snapped- but nothing was loose- or something had just landed on the bridge. Po had just realised he was squeezing his staff too tightly; he loosened his grip but not too slackly and took a deep gulp. In this dense fog, anything was possible.

"What was that?" The panda asked aloud.

Hao began to whimper, it was beginning to prove excessively scary for him.

Then the bridged shuddered again- but lighter this time- then again. There came the sound of boards creaking from behind; groaning louder and louder as they got closer to the duo. Hao moved behind Po once more as the Dragon Warrior twisted on his heels and faced the way he had heard the noise. He clenched his staff and dropped down into stance, pointing the stick towards the mist. A shadow now faded out from the fog, coming into focus as the bridge's rapid vibrations got heavier and louder. Po's heart got caught in his throat; breathing quickly and heavy. Hao began to physically shake as the large form grew clearer from the mist. Po managed to steel himself and gulped, sending his heart back down into his chest where it belonged.

The shadow now took its true form. It was tall and covered in black: making out to be a bird of some kind, shockingly larger than any avian Po had ever seen, towering over the panda by more than a head taller. Its wings were broad and solid, covered by its jagged black coat of sinister feathers. Malicious claws scraped away at the boards as the creature drew closer, long and dark like his feathers with a beak to match. But the one thing that scared both Po and Hao, turning their hearts to ice, was the burning blood red eyes that stabbed at them.

The great creature spread its massive wings, darkening the mist around it in black and grey. Po stepped back in amazement at the bird's span; his wings were so huge and horrifying that they hung over the edge of the barriers like a ragged cape. The avian hunched forward, smiling vilely. His eyes focused in on Po and then the small hybrid cub behind the panda- he kept a cold stare.

Po placed a paw on Hao's chest, gently pushing the cub behind him. "Hao...run..." Po said out of the corner of his mouth. The cub looked up to Po and clutched his cape even tighter, looking back down to the eagle once more. "Run!" Po bellowed, scaring the cub and making him sprint off down the bridge after the others. It was at Po's shouting voice that the eagle let out a fierce screech, charging at Po. The panda moved in for the attack, swinging for the bird. But the avian was not after Po, merely knocking the panda onto his back and springing into the air after Hao.

Po immediately understood the eagle's intentions and latched out a paw, taking hold of its claw. The bird fell forward onto the bridge, looking back at Po and trying to swipe him. The panda was quick to dodge before getting to his feet and running over the eagle, just missing the snapping of its beak at his foot.

Hei Xin watched as the panda trampled over his body and ran after the cub. The bird sneered and his eyes were set alight. Getting up, the Captain smiled darkly as he unsheathed his claws and swiped at rope barriers. The bridge dropped a little, Hei made for the rest without delay. With a small chuckle the avian leapt into the mist, vanishing from sight as the bridge broke in two.

Hao kept running on all fours, moving as fast as his feet could carry him. Tears whipped from his eyes as the high winds hiding amongst the fog rushed past. He soon came off the bridge and onto the small flat mound of a mountain top; seeing the columns of the next passage the hybrid bolted for it. He could make out the forms of the Kung Fu Masters and his mother forming in the fog, they moved on a steady pace- unaware of what they were walking into.

"Mama!" Hao cried at the top of his lungs. "Help!"

Fu instantly heard her calling, sensing the fear and terror in her child's voice. She, and the other Kung Fu Masters, spun to look at the cub on the mountain platform. Fu moved her way past Monkey and Viper. Hao moved to the start of the bridge but slid to a halt, falling onto his backside, when a figure swooped in out of nowhere and cut through the top and bottom two rope anchors.

The cub stared at the bridge, snapping his eyes down as he heard the cracking and groaning of the ropes, or what was left of them. Hao's multi-coloured orbs grew wide. He looked up, Fu was just making her way past Tigress when both the felines saw the figure swoop in and cut away the ropes. Tigress and Fu froze, listening as the twine of fibres holding up the end of the bridge creaked.

The Kung Fu female saw the strands finally break. "Hold on!" She roared to her companions. Hao watched with a stricken gaze at his mother, her eyes filled with trepidation. She reached out a paw in means to hold her child again. The warriors just managed to take hold of the bridge as the final three parts holding up the crossway gave out with simultaneous snaps. Fu screamed as her feet gave way to empty air, falling into mist. Hao child quickly scampered to the edge of the mountain and reached out a helpless paw.

"_**MAMA!"**_

Like a great swing the broken bridge curved through the air and slammed with a mighty thunk against the face of the mountainside. The dangling crossway rippled before coming to a settling stand still. The Kung Fu Masters- apart from Crane who instantly took flight at the bridge collapsing- all hung on for dear life against the planks of wood like a ladder. Tigress was having trouble with holding on.

As the snaps of the ropes echoed through the pass, Tigress looked back to find Fu reaching out desperately for Hao. The feline groaned as she latched a paw onto the collar of Fu's cloak just as the planks gave way beneath them, taking a firm grasp with her free paw onto the wooden plank.

Now suspended above nothing, Tigress clenched her teeth. She looked down as Fu finally composed herself and hooked her arms onto Tigress'. The warrior female gave two sways of her arm, using the momentum to swing Fu up and onto the ladder next to herself.

Tigress glanced upwards to the hazy form of her Master clinging to the bridge. "Something cut through the ropes!"

"What was it?" Mantis asked.

"Nothing good, that's for sure." Monkey replied.

"Well, whatever it is, it just- _Argh!_" Fu screamed out in pain, losing her grip on the wooden planks. It was only by Tigress catching hold of her waist that she did not fall into the mist that enshrouded them.

"Fu!" Shifu screamed from the top of the group, his ears catching her tone of voice in the shriek.

"She's alright!" Tigress reassured. The feline noticed a tear in the clothing of Fu's cloak and shirt, fresh blood soiled the brown material a darker colour. Then, noticing the long thin object sticking out of the rock face- feathers littered along its tail- Tigress' eyes hardened with a perceptive stare. Both felines looked up as another sound of whooshing air past the broken bridge. It was only by her years of martial training, combined with the natural features of her feline instincts of seeing dark areas that Tigress managed to fully identify the fast moving form.

A growl tickled at her throat as she spotted the spread wings of a large eagle, its eyes dark and hollow like a grave, claws and fangs razor-looking. Straddling its back was a cheetah, a sheath of quivers at his hip. A bow raised in Tigress' direction, arrow drawn back and ready to fire. The cheetah gave a smirk as he noticed Tigress staring right at him.

He let the arrow go.

Tigress rolled aside as the arrow embedded itself in the rocky wall. Urging Fu to take hold and start climbing, Tigress was not far behind as she informed her friends. "Archers! They're riding eagles!"

Shifu grunted in frustration. Yet at the same time was suspicious, no ordinary bandits could conjure up such a strategized ambush. Memories of the last time the Five, Shifu and Po had come across such a predicament of being trapped on the Thread of Hope but the Grand Master pushed them back into his mind as he moved aside, urging his students to pass him. "Hurry, get to the top and hide in the trees!" The Furious Five were quick to follow the order. Two more eagles flew in from the wall of mist, the archers on their backs firing two more shots. Shifu kicked one away, the other hit the wall only a metre to the left. As Fu passed Shifu, cradling her injured arm close to her chest the red panda noticed blood leaking down from her shoulder. The gash was deep. His sapphire eyes held concern, but Fu gave a quick smile before pulling herself up with her good arm.

Soon the Kung Fu masters reached the top; Fu was helped behind a tree by Monkey as Viper and Mantis got to work with covering the wound. Crane landed on the flat ground and plastered himself against the tree just next to Viper, Monkey, Mantis and Fu's. He looked at his huddled friends. "Tell me I'm not seeing feline archers riding eagles back there."

The four gave each their own small smile, keeping spirits high in their tight situation. The avian chuckled as he tilted his hat back a touch, wiping away a few beads of sweat before straightening out his hat again. "Man, they're fast." Crane said as he peeked his long neck out from behind the tree, trying to catch a glimpse of the sky before an eagle swooped in and a set of arrows shot from his rider's bow. Crane backed up against the trunk of his tree as the arrows harmlessly fired into the ground, just missing his face. "And they're damn good aimers, too!"

There came a soft thud. Crane looked to opposite his friends' tree to his other side where Tigress and Shifu had just slumped up against the trunk of the tree a few metres away: a trail of arrows in their wake. The two Kung Fu Masters huffed and puffed with deep breaths from their short bursts of dodging the projectiles.

Crane stared with astonishment. "They're _really _good."

* * *

Hao was unmoving, leaning over the edge of the flat mountain top, arm outstretched to his mother now lost to the mist. He then heard footsteps quickly approaching from behind. The cub snapped out of his trance and got to his feet. Tears cascading down his cheeks, eyes still fixed on the area where his mother once stood, Hao clenched his small paws into fists. The footsteps were getting louder. The hybrid's head jolted over his shoulder with a growl, he turned to face the oncoming attacker with his newfound courage lost amidst the anger and pain that swelled within him. Hao stuck out his chest.

The form came out of the fog and rolled to a stop a metre away from Hao. It was Po. Hao sighed, but it was more of a disappointed gasp of grief than of relief. The panda got to his feet and ran up to Hao. "Where are the others?" He asked, noticing the matted fur beneath Hao's eyes. The cub looked away and closed his eyes.

Po looked up from Hao to the stone columns hoping to find his friends. But they weren't there, and neither was the bridge. The wind was knocked out of his lungs. "Oh no." The panda rushed to the edge to confirm his eyes, the entire bridge was gone. He couldn't see the other side. "No...No!"" The light whisper of doubt was not only for the fact that he lost his friends but the reality that the bridge the other way had, too, been cut in half.

They were stranded.

A break in the clouds, soon appeared, a clear view of the sky above. There was a moment as the entire small mountain platform lit up underneath the sun. Neither Po nor Hao bothered to look up at that time, realising that things were about to get worse.


	9. Fire in Black and White

Is Love Safe?

Chapter Nine- Fire in Black and White

Fu, Hao, Hei Xin, Shen, Chen and Jai Wu (c) are mine

* * *

Going against the high winds of the open mountain pass- almost hovering in the sky- Hei Xin watched with scouting eyes bearing down on the fog below. His massive wings spread to catch the wind rippling throughout his black feathers. Hei looked over his shoulder to his clan of eagles- much like himself- and the selection of top notch archers riding on their backs. All of their eyes hollow and dark: emotionless, ready to kill.

Looking past the group, the Captain noticed the edge of the fog bank was rolling under the group. Most predatorily birds would have classed this to be a stroke of good luck, allowing a crystal clear view to the bridges still standing below.

But Hei not was- 'called'- _Captain_ just for the reason to understand ranks of the group he now dwelled with, the title of Admiral to Leo was just something to actually force ranks- Hei snorted at this - but to reconcile on his past when he was a leader of the Imperial Army. He was proud, strong, determined and fearless. However, Hei had a habit of being too violent and brutal to his men both during training and on the battlefield, striking _anyone _in his way to reach his main target. He was eventually removed of his position with it given to another. At the time of his leave some of his stronger followers left with him out of their own choice. Hei took the use of his men and ultimately killed off the soul who had 'stolen' his rightful place.

Months later and living the life of a lowly peasant, drunk in a bar with his followers, it was when this news of his public murder of the new Captain spread far that Jai Wu was quick to step into his life with Leo at her side. She offered his title back and a much greater force than that of the Imperial Army, the bird accepted without delay.

How could he not?

And so, with the tide of fog slowly rolling away, Hei Xin and his men had little more than a minute before the entire pass would be in the open and his ambush plan would fall apart; it would have been all for nothing. But that wouldn't stop Hei Xin from tearing his enemies apart with his claws.

Providence shifted in his favour, for the Captain spotted a break in the sea of fog, catching a glimpse of both Po and Hao standing on the isolated mountain. Hei's beak morphed into a long twisted smile of wickedness. He motioned to rest of the group, nodding downwards. They all looked and caught the glimpse of Po and Hao. "Kill the panda, bring me the cub!" The eagles and their riders bobbed their heads before diving into the fog below. Hei watched before focusing his attention on the area of heavy ashen vapour where Fu, Shifu and his students hid among the trees.

"The lynx is mine!"

* * *

Po stood looking out across the gap that was once was where the last bridge of the Thread of Hope. His jade green eyes piercing the wall of fog to try and see to the Northern Plain archway on the other side, more specifically trying to make out the opposite end of the bridge, but the fog was so intense Po could see no further than to the bride column on the other side of the mountain island where both he and Hao were trapped.

Po's eyes brightened, he had completely forgotten about Hao.

The panda turned to find the cub standing with his back to him. Po walked up to the cub. "Hao?"

"S-she's gone." The hybrid sniffed deeply, he looked up to Po as the panda came to his side; tears were running freely down his cheeks. "She's gone." He choked.

Po sighed and kneeled down to the cub, placing a paw on his shoulder and looking straight into Hao's yellow and purple eyes. "Now you listen to me, Hao. They're not gone; your mother is not dead! I know Shifu and the Five; they've more likely got her safe somewhere on the other side." Po wiped the cub's small eyes with his cloak and nodded. "There we are. Now promise me you'll never stop believing that you're not alone." The cub sniffed and rubbed his nose with his forearm but bobbed his head with a tiny grin. "Good. Come 'ere." Po beamed as he spread his arms open to Hao. The cub wasted no time in accepting Po's hug and held on tight. "There were go..." Po cooed, patting his back. "All better?"

They separated and Hao rubbed his eyes. "Uh-huh."

"Good now-" Po's head snapped up as he saw a figure drop from out of the fog and land in front of him. Then another dropped, and another. Po got to his feet and pushed Hao behind him with his paw as they backed away from the animals. More soon fell from the fog and landed; all of their eyes were dark and hollow. Po felt an uneasy clenching in his stomach; something told him that these guys weren't here to help. He then noticed the variety of weapons on each of their belts, the bows and arrows on their backs. These were no ordinary archers; they looked disciplined and trained to shoot the wings even off the smallest of flies.

"Hao, stay behind me." Po sternly told the cub.

The archers each faced Po side on, all of them slowly drawing their weapons from their belts. The screeching sound of blades coming out sheaths and the clang of maces and axes made Po grip his staff firmly.

There was a moment of stillness.

Then the one archer directly opposite from Po- a cheetah- titled his head to the side cracking a few bones in his neck ahead of bolting forwards with unbelievable speed. The others joined in.

Po grasped the handle of Shen's sword tightly in his left paw, pulling it out of the sheath on his back with a great tug, giving his famous battle cry. The blade slipped free of is cover and swished through the air as the panda swiped for his enemies. The archers jumped back at the strike but were quick to leap forward afterwards and bring their weapons down. Po rose up his staff and blocked the multiple attacks, with a grunt he forced them off but did not lower his staff. He took a moment to look over each of his adversaries with a cold glare from his jade eyes. They were all hunched, elbows bent and fists clenched around their weapons.

In that moment of calm danger, neither Po nor the attackers moved. The fog was still heavy, giving Po a limited range to visibly seeing the archers, but it was beginning to lighten up as the winds picked up. Po's long fur danced with his cloak in the rushing air. The panda remained planted over Hao, his stick raised up like barrier; holding the long shimmering blade of Shen's sword high in the air behind his head, ready to bring it down and slice these marauders in half. The hiding cub at Po's feet looked to the archers with wide eyes gleaming with fear and terror after seeing what they were capable of. The hybrid crouched lower to the ground and a whimper crept its way up his throat.

Po caught wind of Hao crying at his feet but dared not to take his eyes off the archers, not if the little cub's life depended on it. He had to find a way to calm Hao down at the same time of protecting him. The only thought that came to mind was to talk, just keep him talking. "Don't cry, Hao." Po spoke with as much of a soft tone as he could. "Don't look at them, close your eyes."

Hao gulped hard and looked away from the standoff with tightly shut eyes, his paws covering them for extra measures.

"You lookin' away?" Po asked, his eyes darting from adversary to adversary.

The cub sniffed and shook his head. "...Uh-huh."

"Awesome." Po cooed, his attention now drawn to a leopard drawing a bit too close for his liking. "Now...t-tell me about yourself, huh, what...what did you get from your last birthday?" With the question finished, the feline sprang for Po with unsheathed claws and sharp fangs. Po was a step ahead and smacked the archer aside with his staff. The feline rolled across the floor and fell of the mountain, plummeting into the mist and to his death.

"I...I got a...n-new top a...and pants." Hao replied as he listened to the roar of the feline attacking Po and the panda grunting as he knocked the archer over the edge.

"That's cool, whoa!" Po gasped as he rose up the sword and blocked an oncoming attack from a mace. He was forced to bend backwards at the strength of the wielder- a hefty looking wolf with black eyes- grunting as he pushed the weapons sideways, giving Po the opportunity to swing his staff round and pummel the archer into the floor. The canine groaned but didn't get up. "What does it look like?" The next attacker lunged forwards with his sword raised high.

Hao curled his tail around his legs and cringed as he heard the clang, clang, clang of metal scraping metal; the echoing sound of the swords clashing ringing throughout the mountains. He mentally told himself not to turn around or even peek through his paws. He just kept talking in little stutters. "They're black...black pants..." He paused; tears were squeezing between his eyes and paws, wanting to run free down his face.

"And the top?" Po encouraged over the sounds of battle.

Hao took a shaky breath. "Pur-purple...with green lacing...and...and..." There was a sudden cry of pain that sounded somewhere between a loud howl and a feral screech. The scream penetrated Hao's tiny ears and ringed through his body as if he were an iron bell. The cub snapped his paws from his eyes and held down his ears, trying to draw out the fight happening mere inches from where he sat. It was too much, Hao shrieked out loud in terror. "Ahh!" The tears fell to the floor in little puddles.

Po sliced his way through his enemy, the blade cutting through an opening in the archer's defence and deep into his chest. Blood spurted from his skin and dotted the ground as his body collapsed on the spot and grew still. It was after he went down that Po heard Hao screech from behind him. He rose up both his staff and sword in front of him and eyed the remaining riders. The odds were against him, Po was undoubtedly outnumbered and outmatched.

"Hao...Hao! Shh! Shh! It's okay." The panda tried his best to soothe. "It's okay, I'm here. I'm still here." Po took a moment to pause and take a few deep breaths; he wouldn't be able to finish these guys off. He wished that Crane, Shifu, Tigress, anyone would just jump in and help him out. The likelihood of that happening was slim. "What...what else did it have, Hao?" For a second, in the pause of the battle and the howls of the winds, Po thought he heard the cub calling for his father. Po's heart tightened and his eyebrows furrowed. He almost wanted to cry himself, almost.

The fog now gave way to a clear bright sky, the edge of the heavy mist still continued on rolling north.

Po took a deep breath; long, slow and steady as a rock. He had a clear view of everything around him "Hao...what else did your top have on it?"

There was a little sound of sniffling and the choking of tears, but Hao had heard the panda.

"A white rose."

Po froze and his heart skipped a beat. His eyes gradually glancing down at the floor but hastily drew them back up as he saw one of the archers take a swing for him with a double bladed axe. Po rose up both his staff and the sword, the great weapon came crashing down. The panda was forced to one knee from the blow. The remaining attackers jumped in at seeing that Po was now beginning to lose the fight. The panda was forced further to the ground at the weight of the raiders climbing into his body.

There was a tiny scream. Po looked behind him with a gasp as he saw Hao get snatched up off his feet from a cheetah. The cub reached out and cried for the panda with glassy eyes. "Po!" The archer made a dash for the edge of the mountain, ready to leap where his eagle companion would catch him and take Hao away from Po and his mother.

"Hao!"

In the moment of seeing Hao get taken away Po's mind slowed time almost to a stop. He thought of last night where he unintentionally went to strike Fu. He remembered the emotions that swirled within him: the anger, the hatred, only seeing red: the flash of memories from over twelve months ago when he viciously fought off Chen with only his teeth and claws. Reminiscing on how he almost attacked Tigress up in the Dragon's Pass, before they were ambushed by Chen and his men on the mountain side, where the kung fu warriors first knew of Po's feral state. The Dragon Warrior's mind suddenly clocked an idea; he was able to stop his unnatural anger because it was too early in the process of when he was poisoned.

If he could do it once he could do it again.

Closing his eyes, Po took in a few deep through his nose. He could hear the men looming over him laugh, thinking that he was giving into their power: fools to their own cause. Filled with an old but raw energy, the panda's eyes snapped open with a burning look in their green orbs, his ears drew back and a growl that was low and deep erupted from the bottom of his throat. The archers ceased their laughter and noticed the change of Po's manner, with one glance at him and then at each other they were thrown into the air, landing on the floor on their backs.

The archer running with Hao stopped in his tracks and turned just in time to see his colleagues get thrown aside like old rags. His face was just as stunned as the cub in his arm, unable to grasp the concept as to how the Dragon Warrior had now become so powerful all of a sudden. But with one simple stare into Po's eyes the assailant now understood, his odds and the odds of his comrades had shrunk to the size of a grain of rice. Po's throat rumbled louder with a menacing snarl as his fists clenched so tight around the staff and sword that they audibly groaned under the pressure.

In the stare down between Po and the kidnapper, little Hao went rigid as he gawked at the Dragon Warrior with unbelieving eyes. Having only met Po yesterday and known him for a very short time, Hao did not know of his new found friend's troubles and conditions. He was not told of Po's feral state and the endeavours that he had gone through both with Shifu and The Furious Five or on his own. He was curious as to why Po had gotten so angry at Fu last night, nearly hitting her but holding back and storming out the kitchen. He believed the panda to be an adult on the outside but with a heart as young as Hao's own in the inside.

Now he understood, to some perspective. He remembered the stories that his father used to tell him of when the feline was up in the Northern Mountain Plains, with a panda who had little control of his anger, but out of his own will.

That panda, in the stories, it had to be Po.

Men like the kidnapper had little respect for his companions, with the type of animals that he comingled with there was little sympathy for those who got hurt or killed. It was killed or be killed. Without saying a word to his standing companions the creature gave a small smirk, tightened his jaw and courageously leapt back of the mountain. Po's enraged emerald eyes widened a bit and he made after the animal, sliding to a stop at the edge. He was quick to see the archer and Hao reappear on the back of an eagle, flying further and further away towards the Northern Plains archway.

Po snarled viciously and turned to the other assailants only to watch them drop off the mountain edge and fly away on their own rides, following on towards the gateway towards the North. Po growled even deeper as he watched the eagles and archers fly away, leaving him alone standing atop the mountain top, which felt more like an island surrounded by a sea of ashen mist.

Marooned.

That was what he felt.

Still not completely integrated or drawn out from his feral state, his mind working with the best of both worlds, Po's jade eyes followed the assailants as they landed on the other side underneath the stone archway of the Northern Plains and disappeared into the woods. The last rider, however, cast a long stare back at Po with empty eyes and grinned darkly with a scoff before tagging after his colleagues.

Po hissed viciously to himself as he watched the archer fade away. His eyes darted to the ground as he paced on the spot, sheathing Shen's sword and his staff onto his backpack, his mind searching for a way to go after the attackers, but there was no way across. The only means of getting to the other side would be to sprout wings and fly or try and jump the gap.

Po then halted...try to jump the gap.

The panda glanced at the space between him and the archway; he could still see the remains of the broken bridge hanging like a ladder. Po's mind calculated the possibilities. It was definitely work the risk if it meant going after Hao and returning him to Fu alive. The panda leaned over the edge, seeing how the makeshift ladder of the bridge dipped into the mist, Po nodded. His mind was made up. Going to the far edge of the mountain top, Po slowly turned to the large gap. He took a moment to find his breath, dropping to all fours in order to get the push he would need. The panda unsheathed his claws and, with a rock of his body, Po sprang forward.

He moved quickly across the floor, his claws sinking into the soil to get the extra push onwards. The panda's cape billowing behind him, sword and staff bouncing on his back as he came to the edge of his run. Planting his feet on the very rim of the rocky edge, so far most would have thought he was going to slip and fall; Po sprang like a rabbit from the mountain edge. Gravity soon claimed him halfway through the jump as he began a rapid descent, arms outstretched and claws ready to catch the nearest holdall.

Falling further Po was engulfed by the sea of mist.

* * *

Shifu had adopted a lotus position on the floor behind the tree he and Tigress had been forced to seek shielding from the rain of arrows. His face was placid, eyes gently closed and hands resting on his knees. Tigress was at his side, sticking the her head out of the safe zone of the tree and just catching short glimpses of nothing but masses of fog. She speedily pulled her head back in and growled frustratingly as a burst of arrows embedded in the ground. "Damn it!" She hissed, slamming a fist into the trunk of the tree. The force of her fist caused the tree to drop an apple from a branch and plop innocently onto the floor right infront of Shifu. The Grand Master did not open his eyes or even twitch his ear.

Tigress took a long, deep breath and glanced sideways to Fu sitting perched up against the tree next two to the left from her own. The lynx's shoulder was wrapped in bandages, a smudge of blood showing beneath the fabric, her tail was twitching in irritation. She feared for her son, praying silently that he was still alive. Monkey, Mantis and Viper were also perched up against the tree's trunk. Tigress could see the annoyance in their eyes that they were as useless to help Hao or Po just as much as she was. Crane was no different: his head was tilted forward, hiding his face, eyes closed. It was not that he was thinking, but because he was ashamed.

Years and years of training to deflect even the sharpest of projectiles with a flick of his wing and yet he couldn't knock any of these arrows away in time without getting struck by one. He needed the right moment, the right angle- it was all necessary. Give him the slightest second of a chance and anything thrown at the avian would be deflected as if tossed aside like a speck of dust.

The fog had now passed them by; they were in the open and unprotected, even through all the branches and hedges none of them were safe.

There was then a loud cry. Fu bolted into an upright position, her ears erect and body as rigid like she had just been struck lightning. "Hao!" She said aloud. The lynx tried to look around the tree but was held back by Monkey, preventing her from being skewed alive by the archers' projectiles. A few harmlessly lodged themselves in the ground where Fu once stood, leading a trail up to the tree in the floor. Fu fell onto her backside and took a gasping breath, paw at her chest.

Tigress used the small opportunity of the archers' firing at Fu to peep round the tree. She wanted to look skyward but something else caught her sight. Through all the trees Tigress' feline eyes zoomed in like binoculars on the small mountain platform on the opposite end where the bridge once sat. She could see a group of the vicious marauders charging at Po, the little form of Hao curled up behind him. The panda was overpowered and tackled to the floor, disappearing beneath the bodies of the archers.

Tigress gave a hollow gasp in horror.

A High pitched screech drew Tigress' attention skywards as an eagle swooped in low, he was large and covered in feathers as dark as night. Tigress assumed this was the leader, seeing as he was alone. The kung fu master watched as he fell to the ground with grace and robust landing, dropping on his feet to the ground with a thud so heavy it shook the very earth on which Tigress stood. The black eagle he drew himself upright and towered tall: oh, yeah, definitely the leader in this fiasco.

Shifu's strong blue eyes finally opened.

"Master Shifu!" Hei Xin called, scanning the trees with his ruby red eyes. "I know you're out there! I know you can hear me!" Shifu slowly and calmly got to his feet as he listened to the Captain. "This is pointless, things are getting nowhere." Hei's voice carried among the group. "I'm going to give you a onetime offer: surrender the lynx and the cub to me and I'll gladly take my men and leave. I give you my word."

Shifu's eyes drifted to Tigress and his hiding tree. He placed a hand against the bark and leaned out just enough to see Hei Xin. No wonder the voice sounded so familiar to him. The red panda pulled back behind the tree and called out: "Been a while since I heard your voice, Hei Xin. Last time we met was before you were kicked out of the Imperial Army, correct?" Shifu asked.

Hei's feathers bristled in frustration but he held a devilish smirk. "Right you are, old friend. How's the elderly turtle?"

"...Dead."

Hei Xin chuckled before pouting. "Aww, such a shame, it's about damn time!"

Shifu was quick to change the subject before his anger took over and he rushed out from his cover. "I see you've found new work, linking up with these ruthless criminals is way below your standards. You could be so much more, Hei Xin."

"That's still _Captain _Hei Xin, to you small fry!" The eagle hissed.

"Oh, still fresh as ever on the rage I see; wasn't that title taken from you when you were booted from the Imperial Army?"

"Not since our Commander gave me the opportunity to have all that I desire."

There was a pause from the Grand Master. "I can tell it's not enough for you, Hei Xin. You're voice says a lot, you want more: always the bridesmaid never the bride. Greed was always one of your downfalls in the Army."

The Captain snorted. "Dry humour coming from someone whose is stuck hiding like a coward behind a few old twigs. I'll give you my offer one more time, Shifu! Surrender the lynx and her cub, and I'll have my archers on leave." Hei's eyes narrowed. "You're choice, and choose quickly old timer, I'm not the patient type!"

Shifu took a minute to register his options. His blue orbs looked up to over where Fu sat leaning against her tree, her violet eyes connected with his. She was on the verge of tears. For the first time, when they were so far apart, Shifu wanted to hold Fu close and tell her everything was going to be alright. But he couldn't. His feelings of being useless now matched that with Crane's, mixed with the anger and frustration of having no option but to give up so easily. Clenching his fists and hardening his eyes Shifu barked at the Captain. "You'll kill them and then try to go for me and my students. I know you, Hei Xin! Forget it! I'm not giving up on my family! You want them; you'll have to go through me first!" Shifu looked to Fu; she was smiling and sighed in relief.

Shifu grinned back.

Silence, it was unnerving and dead like a grave.

It lasted long, longer than Shifu had anticipated for Hei Xin to reply. There was no sound for a few good minutes, and then there came of rushing wind and beating of multiple wings. The heavy breeze soon settled and there was a noise of squirming and grunting. Finally Hei's voice crept back into the air. "Seems I won't need to, old friend." There was an unusual tone of success and triumph in the Captain's voice. It made a cold shiver run down Shifu's spine. The Grand Master raised a suspicious eyebrow and peered around his tree to find Hei Xin now had reinforcements. A row of archers stood at attention behind Hei on either side, bows at the ready. But that was not where Shifu's main attention was drawn, more towards the cheetah standing just slightly behind Hei Xin. In his arms was Hao, crying his eyes out but in a stifled silence. Shifu's heart went as cold as ice. "For as you can more likely see, Shifu, I already have the cub!"

Fu was on her feet instantly. "Hao!

"Mama?" The cub replied automatically through tears. "Mama!"

"You let my son go!" The lynx shouted, swearing blue murder to the Captain as she ran out from her cover. Viper and Monkey held her back from stepping out in the open. "Let me go! That's my son! I swear Hei Xin- or whatever your name is- I'll tear your eyes out if you harm my son! I'll do it! I'll kill you, all of you!"

Hei and his men laughed. "I'd like to see you try, little lady." The Captain chuckled.

"Enough!" Shifu barked, silencing both Fu and Hei's group. "Alright, Hei, you win." All the kung fu students looked at their Grand Master with stunned eyes. Fu had gone completely still, her mouth dropped open like a tunnel. Shifu discretely rose up a bony finger to his lips.

Removing his finger Shifu suggested."I'll give you Fu, but I want Hao. I want the cub back."

There was a pause. "No deal." Hei said.

"Alright, alright then!" Shifu groaned. "Answer me something at least..."

Another pause. "...Go ahead." Hei's voice welcomed.

Shifu took a deep breath. "Okay then, here's the question: who are you really working for, Hei? I want the name of your true leader and the group name as well."

"The Commander's name is Jai Wu." Hei said without delay, spelling out each words and syllable with emphasis. "She's the one you want to talk to about all this. She's stolen you precious Shen and is hiding up in the mountains."

Shifu looked at the ground, asking himself in a whisper. "She?"

The same question was going through all the kung fu warriors' minds.

It was a woman behind all this?

Fu was just as much angered as she was confused by the fact it was a woman who had taken her husband.

Snapping from his thoughts, Shifu took another quick glimpse of Hei and his men. They had to get to Hao, somehow. Tightening his lips, the Grand Master spread his feet and leaned slightly forward, bending down to pick up the fallen apple from the tree. He rotated it in his small hand, feeling the weight of the fruit. Tigress saw the look in her Master's blue eyes. The feline smirked and prepared herself. Crane also saw it from beneath his hat, the position and gleam in Shifu and Tigress' eyes told the avian all he needed to know. The bird took a long deep breath, spreading his wings slightly and getting into a slight crouch- ready to jump skywards. Shifu now had a plan, but it was one thing short.

All he needed was a distraction, if just for a second.

The kung fu master went to move but stopped when he heard an agonising cry come from Hei Xin's group. Tigress and Shifu both peered round opposite sides of the tree. They watched as commotion set about the gang as they spun around with their weapons raised. The red panda and feline both glanced down to the floor where one of the archers now lay spewed out, a pool of red blood trickling from his body.

Tigress and Shifu exchanged confused looks. They snapped back to the assailants as another figure fell, a blur of a shape passing around the gang. It was swift, fast and precise. Another archer went down, and then an eagle.

Shifu didn't have the time to register who or what was attacking Hei Xin's men, all the red panda saw was his chance to be a part of the fight.

He had his distraction, it was time to move.

"_Now!_"

Upon command Shifu, Tigress, Crane, Monkey and Mantis exploded from behind their trees and charge for the marauders. Viper remained with Fu; the trio having the pleasure, and horror, of watching from the sidelines.

Shifu threw the apple in his hand the moment he wheeled around the tree, the fruit hitting its intended target- square on the nose of the cheetah holding Hao. The cub was dropped to the floor as the feline archer's head reeled back and he was sent crashing to the floor, gripping his nose as he howled in pain. Hao got to his feet and ran away from the feline, past Shifu and into his mother's arms once more. The cheetah was quick to get back on his feet, blood flowing from his muzzle like a waterfall. He sped for the kung fu masters.

The unknown figure had now fully joined in and fought out in the open.

Tigress roared as she lit for the nearest attacker, delivering strikes that were driven with force and brutality. Her enemy fell to the floor instantly and she moved on to take the others coming her way. Crane deflected and blocked any arrows that were shot in his direction, sending them back the way they came in a hail fire as well as taking on the eagles who jumped up to meet his challenge in the sky. Mantis was barely seen, but it was clear he was in the brawl from the way the assailants were thrown about by an invisible force. And as for Shifu- same old, same old- bolted for no one other than the ring leader himself. Hei spread his big black wings and screeched threateningly as he swiped for the small Grand Master.

And what was once a quiet and peaceful forest on the mountain side path now became- with a recognizing sense of déjà vu- a fierce and terrifying scrap.

A few minutes into the all-out brawl a long and horrifying roar overcame the Northern Gateway forest. The fight was brought to a halt. All eyes turned to the mountain edge as Po stood hunched over on all fours, his lips curled and showing rows of sharp teeth. His muzzle scrunched in a deadly snarl. Fu, Viper and Hao peered from behind their tree. The lynx and her son stared at Po with amazed eyes.

But before anyone could say a word the panda rushed forward and pounced on the nearest archer, slicing him across the chest with razor sharp claws. The creature yelled out in agonising pain before his wails quieted and the light left his eyes. The animal's blood sprayed against the trees, Fu covered Hao's eyes and looked away herself. Po looked up from the dead body and charged for his next target. Shifu was the first to strike after the pause in brawl; he leapt up and delivered a full-spin kick to Hei Xin's cheek. The eagle hissed and made for the Shifu with all his rage. Tigress and the other warriors, including the mysterious figure, joined in and the scrap was once again ensued.

Hei Xin jumped back as he dodged a strike from Shifu's fists. The red panda went for him and sprang into the air to gain the momentum for a straight forward kick to the Captain's chest. With a beat of his wing Hei Xin smacked the Grand Master away, Shifu rolled across the dirt. Hei Xin took this moment to take a long good look at the situation that he had drawn him and his men into. He saw how Po crushed and cut up anyone who was stupid enough to take the panda on, batting them away and sending them crashing into the trees. Tigress was taking on at least four of Hei's archers, proving to be no trouble to her cause, the same for Monkey, Crane and the unknown creature.

It was in the glance that the Captain locked glances with Po; the panda was starring right back at him with a death glare. Hei raised his beak in his sneer, arching his back and rustling his feathers as a warning. Po took no notice to his threat and sunk lower to the ground with a deep growl. Hei now knew there was no way he was going to win this battle; he had lost his advantage, the upper hand was no longer his.

Hei hated the option but there was no other way of surviving. "Retreat!" He barked. "Retreat!"

The smaller eagles needed no arguing with their leader's orders and were leaping into the sky, beating their wings furiously and disappearing amongst the clouds. Some of them flew off with their riders whilst others did not bother waiting as their companions had either been too injured to take with or were already dead. Joining his men, Hei Xin spread his large, menacingly black wings and beat down a wind that pulled him off the ground.

But Po was not letting the bird get away so easily. Rushing forward the panda jumped up and latched onto Hei Xin like a leech; his claws dug tight and deeply into the avian's feathers and skin. Hei Xin howled at the pain and tired pushed Po off him with his claws. The panda was not intending of letting go without a fight, opening his maw Po sunk his teeth down on Hei's shoulder. The eagle screamed out something terrible, managing to push Po off with his black claws.

Po lost his grip and fell to the Earth on all fours like a cat.

The Captain groaned as blood dripped from his open wounds, his wings beating unevenly as he pushed on into the sky and vanished with his followers in the clouds.

Back on the ground Fu, Hao and Viper emerged from their tree and joined the others as they watched as the flock of birds leave the fight. All eyes soon fell down to Po who now stood a small distance ahead of them. His fur was ruffled and uneven, back hunched and fists balled. His breathing was deep and heavy, mixing with a repeating soft growl.

For a short moment no one moved as they all gazed at the panda with quizzical eyes, wondering how he could be so still in his current condition. The silence was soon shattered as a sudden surge of energy exploded from Po's body. His fists slammed into the nearest tree, and with so much force that it caused it to tip a little, bringing up the roots from beneath the earth. Po then fell to one knee as he let out something that seemed to be between a sort of anguish cry of agony and a roar of hatred.

Everyone took a step back: Fu hid Hao behind her legs. But everyone was quite, letting the panda get it out of his system was the only possible solution without him turning on them. Tigress and Shifu stood still, powerless to helping Po. For their own safety they had to remain a good distance away until the panda was back to his old self again. The kung fu feline master stood still as she watched her lover battle over his dark persona, writhing in suffering, pain and torment as he forced the feral state back within himself. Tigress felt unable to do anything, she wanted to hold and comfort him, but she would be putting herself at risk.

Shifu was in the same predicament as her, unable to do anything but wait.

Soon the panda's cry diminished and shakily got to his feet, leaning against the tree for support. His breaths were heavy and trembling like his body.

There was an awkward stillness in the forest.

After a few seconds Tigress took the first step of breaking the silence. "Po?"

The panda gave a sigh though his nose. He turned his head and glanced at the feline. Tigress gave a soft smile; the Dragon's warrior's eyes had dimmed to their natural shade of green and a smile forced its way onto his lips. Tigress was happy to see the panda back to his same old self again, but there was something different about him. In the case of his jade orbs, Tigress could see a tint of sadness and shame. She hiked her eyebrows in question. Po scanned the eyes of everyone else in the group before finally looking at Hao peeking out from behind Fu's cloak.

Po forced his smile wider. "Sorry about that." He said, hanging his head a little.

Shifu sighed in content. "There's no need for an apology, Po. Everyone is safe, you as well."

The panda nodded and he looked up to the sky with hard emerald eyes. It was then a question came to mind: having been on the other side of the bridge and separated for most of the time, Po had believed that Shifu and the others had survived and made for safety but one tings still confused him. Po lifted a confused eyebrow. "Shifu, how did you get Hao back? Those guys had some accurate archers, if you had stepped out then you would have been full of arrows. How did you manage to even get near them?"

Shifu looked at Po with unfazed orbs. "You're right Po, those archers were quite trained. No push over when under the black eagle, _Captain _Hei Xin's, command. But we managed to get a helping hand, a distraction long enough for us to charge in and get Hao away from Hei's men." Shifu turned and looked to the additional member of the group. The figure was tall and stood proud, shrouded in a cloak and hood that covered its face in blackness. They stepped out from the shadows of the trees and joined the group. Shifu fully turned to the figure, and saluted respectively. "Thank you, good sir. We are grateful for your assistance." The Grand Master said.

Tigress, Fu, Hao and the other kung fu masters did the same to the figure out of thanks. Po, however, did not bow. His eyes were steady yet showing more shame with a hint of worry in their green casings save for the twinkle of happiness and joy. Due to everybody's heads facing the ground in the salute, they did not see the swing of the creature's tail. It was long and grey, covered in dark rings of yellow with the tip of the tail fully black. Po had seen that tail once before.

"Yeah, I guess we can say thanks." Po beamed brightly.

The figure reached out from their cloak and pulled back the hood. Fu, Hao and the kung fu masters rose from their salutes. They soon came to look on the figure. The smiles were swept from their faces. It had been over a year or so since anyone had laid eyes on the feline in front of them. His face was firm and locked, the ashen grey fur had grown a bit, a ponytail of now hung from the back of his head. He was different; time had changed a lot over the space of a year, but the toothy smirk and fiery eyes- once filled with hatred and rage, now gleaming with love and kind-heartedness- had never lost their golden shine.

Po walked up to the form and stuck out his paw, wearing his signature lost-boy smile. The feline smiled back with compassion and reached out a large arm, pumping the panda's paw in a friendly handshake. "Long time no see, panda."

Po laughed heartedly and embraced the feline like an old friend. It was gratefully welcomed. "It's been too long, Tai Lung, too long."


	10. Blinded by Love

Is Love Safe?

Chapter Ten- Blinded by Love

Fu, Hao, Jing Shen, Little Shen and Ming Xing (c) mine

* * *

Like old friends, Tai Lung and Po embraced each other with pats on the back before separating in a good laugh.

The audience that stood there watching were of gaping mouths and stoned faces.

Shifu was the first to step forward. "Panda! What is the meaning of this?"

Po still continued to smile heartedly, the same was for Tai Lung. "There's no worry, Shifu. Tai Lung is good now. He had been for the past year. I've been keeping in contact with him by my own secret messenger goose and letters." The panda explained.

"And you thought it best to keep me in the dark?" The old master growled with his ears pinned back.

Po held up his paw in defence. "Shifu, before you go kicking either mine or Tai Lung's butts around I think you should understand that he _is_ of good nature. I know it. I mean, he did just save us from Hei Xin's men." Po added as he waved his staff to the litter of bodies covering the ground. "Need I say more?"

The red panda uncurled his fists and brought his ears upright. He gave a deep sigh. "Alright Po, I trust you. If you think that Tai Lung is of good nature and for keeping in contact with him for so long...then I believe you. But don't think I trust _him_ completely. There is still much to discuss." Shifu warned with a wave of his finger.

"You're right, Shifu. There is much to talk about." Tai Lung said as he stepped forward. "But I think it's best if we find somewhere safer to continue this conversation. It's possible for those archers to return with reinforcements."

Shifu nodded and turned to Tigress. She nodded in agreement on the situation. "Very well, where do you suggest?" The Grand Master questioned.

Tai Lung smiled and turned on his heels, walking back into the forest. "Follow me."

* * *

Po and the rest of the gang followed Tai Lung as they trespassed through the dense parts of the forest, the darkness of the night air dimming the chances of seeing where they were going. But they soon spotted a faint light in the distance and strode onwards to it. The rest of the gathering soon looked forward to the building that materialised in front of them. Its walls were plain and simple, coloured in a dark brown paint that matched the trees standing around it like figurative bodyguards. There were a few windows staring out onto the path, a light was coming on from the inside. The gang followed Tai Lung with tight lips, not wanting to say anything that would either upset or offend the feline about the house.

They walked up onto a porch as Tai Lung pushed open the front door and walked in. Po was the first to follow with the others towing behind. The inside was warm and welcoming, brightly lit with candles situated in lanterns and on stools. Once inside, everyone stood in the low candle light and surveyed the room. It was the main room of the household, widely spaced and of basic principle: with a large wooden table in the centre of the room, placed on top of it were an assortment of candle sticks and an old lantern hanging from the ceiling above it. There were three rice papered doors, one leading to a small kitchen, the other leading to the main bedroom and an extra room that was surprisingly larger than the bedroom: a space where the spotted feline could personally train.

Tai Lung gave a sigh of relief and dropped his cloak on a hook by the door. "Come on in." He welcomed with a swing on his paw. His was face wearing that same smile of pride, with a hint of embarrassment. "It's not much, but it's home." The gang all looked over the space with inspecting eyes; none of them knew what to say.

But Po knew exactly the right words. "I think it's awesome." The panda beamed.

Tai Lung let out a small sigh of relief. "I'm glad." He then turned, calling out. "Ming? Ming, I'm home."

"Tai Lung? Is that you?" A tender voice came from the door leading to the bedroom. Tai Lung strode off with a powerful walk as he opened the door and slipped into the darkened room. The kung fu masters, Fu and Hao stood out by the front door as they waited for the big cat to reappear in the doorway. All of them were silent as they listened in on the voices coming from the other side of the rice paper barrier. "I'm glad you're back."

"Me too." Tai Lung's voice cooed. There was a pause; still no lights came on from inside the room. "How is he?" The snow leopard asked.

"He's sleeping, took him a while though. He has his father's energy." The soft tone said.

Tai Lung's deep voice chuckled softly. "Well, he has his mother's beauty."

There was a pause and a regretting sigh. "I'm just glad he doesn't have my eyes."

"Your eyes or my eyes, I love you both just the way you are."

"I love you too."

"Good, now come with me. There are some people I'd like you to meet."

"Oh, Tai Lung. " The soft voice now shook with fright and uncertainty. "No, no, I couldn't. What would they think if they saw me? I'm...I...I don't want to embarrass you."

"How could you?"

The silence that soon filled the house told the gang waiting around the main room table that the snow leopard already knew the answer. "...Oh." Tai Lung soon caught the idea. "Well, it doesn't matter. You can't embarrass me in front of these guys. Trust me."

There group braced themselves as they were about to meet this Ming character, but as Tai Lung came slowly through the door and into the light of the main space all the kung fu masters and Fu bit their lips simultaneously. Hao, being at the young age that he was, tilted his head to the side and stared with curiosity and interest.

Nobody could help but stare at the female as she stepped into the room, coming to lean on the ex-evil feline. Ming was a snow leopard, like Tai Lung, but slightly shorter in height and slimmer. Her attire was of a simple dark green robe with a brown sash across her waist, capturing her curves and form of her body. But of all the things that the group could draw their attention to, it was the snow leopard's face. Whereas most feline's eyes were bright yellow, orange or ember coloured with dark irises, the female's orbs still had their golden ring but the irises were ashen grey. There was a covering of three claw marks running parallel over her entire muzzle.

She was blind, but the smile on her face gave off a bright aura from her body that gave everyone a sense to relax.

Tai Lung addressed the gathering, before mentioning to the woman on his arm. "Everyone, this is Ming Xing."

The female feline bowed her head and spoke with a voice so soothing and calm that the kung fu masters all relaxed their shoulders. "It's nice to meet you all."

Po leaned on his staff and smiled softly. His eyes dancing from both Tai Lung and then Ming, much like what everyone else was doing, but with an understanding gaze in his green eyes. He then looked down to the Tai Lung's paw when he spotted something gleaming on against the feline's claw. And then he noticed the same gleam coming from Ming's claw.

Po's eyes sparkled. Those gleams were the reflection of the candle light on a set of rings, golden rings. A gaping smile spread across his face. "You never told me that you were married!"

The gang all snapped their eyes to the panda before looking to Tai Lung and Ming who were glowing, not a shine that came from the light of the burning candles but the kind that came from the inside of someone's heart and shone so bright that it glowed like an evening star.

No one could deny it.

Tai Lung and Ming, they were married.

* * *

Further on into the night, everyone had settled in after coming down from the high of the surprising news that Tai Lung and Ming were married. Everyone had gathered around the table and taken a seat, Ming sat at the head of the table, Shifu at the other end with his head buried deep into his small hands. After both the snow leopards had admitted their relationship, the overwhelming news and shocked, mixed with surprise and a slight touch of astonishment was too much for the Grand Master to take, he collapsed on the spot.

Well, it did break the silence that followed after the news.

The candles of the kitchen were on and the sound of the tea pot was on the stove, its high whistle howling throughout the house mixed with the scraping of cups being gathered for the gathering. Soon Po and Tai Lung came out with a tray of filled cups filled with piping hot tea each. They gave everyone a cup before taking a seat themselves. Tai Lung sat next to his wife and took hold of her paw. Po sat next to Tigress.

"I...I can't believe it." Shifu finally spoke since coming out of his state and fully divulging the information given not a few hours ago. The red panda looked up and dragged his lithe fingers down his face with a groan. He looked straight across the table to Tai Lung and Ming. "First I know that you're alive, and then I find out you're married?"

The snow leopard pair bobbed their heads with simple smiles. "And we also have a son." Tai Lung added, reminding the old master.

"...and have a son." Shifu sighed. His sapphire orbs darted to Ming. "What's his name, by the way?"

Tai Lung and Ming smiled. "Shen. Little Shen, if you like it better, after Tai Lung's brother, Jing Shen."

Shifu was silent for a few minutes, as were Po and Tigress –who shared quick glances at each other. Frozen with his hands on the table, the red panda snapped back to reality. "You do know who it is you married, I'm right, Ming. I do not understand if he has or has not-"

The spotted female laughed, or more giggled. "Relax Master Shifu, I know. Tai Lung told me everything. He missed out nothing. He told me of his past; how you taught him kung fu, the Dragon Scroll, his outrage on the Valley- which led to Ghor Chom prison- his escape, the fight with the Furious Five and the Dragon Warrior. I know it all. There is no secrecy in this family."

"I see." Shifu replied, taking a quiet sip of his tea.

"How is it that you two met?" Crane asked.

At the question, Ming's shoulder tensed up. Her posture went as hard as a rock, as she drew in a sharp breath and gripped Tai Lung's paw more tightly than usual. Shifu, Po and Tigress caught this immediately, they looked down to Ming's paw as Tai Lung gave a comforting squeeze back in reassurance that he was by her side. Tigress eased the tension that had now grown around the table. "You don't need to tell us anything if it makes you uncomfortable. We understand completely."

Ming was quick to come out of her inner shell and compose her manner once again. "No, no, Master Tigress. It's okay. It's just a powerful memory; I don't like to remember it." The female took a deep breath and continued. "But... we can't escape our pasts." Unconsciously, everyone around the table nodded in perceptive agreement. Hao just dipped his head to join with his mother and friends.

"I was never blind before, I used to be able to see and, like all of us felines, had exceptional sight at night than during the day." Tigress nodded, being a tiger herself. "I never knew my parents, like Tai Lung I was an orphan adopted by a foster family since I was very young. They were a harsh family, and I hated them for choosing me. But I guess you can't choose family, can you? I lived with them all my life and learned to rue the day I was born. They were strict, demanding, horrifying. I was one of the unlucky orphans to be picked. I don't even know how or why I was just given to those people...I...I..." Ming began to stutter to a halt as tears came to her eyes and she dipped her head a little.

Tai Lung noticed his wife's expression and got from his seat and stood behind her chair, laying both his paws on her slim shoulders. The great snow leopard took over. "After I had fought Po, and was defeated- I'll admit it- I kept on running as far as I could go in my state. I was ruffled up pretty badly and weak from the fight, but I kept on running. I went over the Thread of Hope, stopping just at the entrance of the Northern Plain to take one look back on the place I once called home." Shifu's eyes gained attention on the table surface, his mind recalling what he said to the Thousand Scroll Master after returning from his escape at Ghor Chom Prison: _this is no longer your home and I am no longer your master_. Those words chocked at his throat with an iron grip. "After that I ran to the nearest civilisation."

"The village of Xi'an." Monkey piped in.

"Correct." Tai Lung acknowledged. "But I knew I couldn't just show my face, I well still a wanted criminal. So for days at a time I would steal things to ensure my survival. Just the little things like peaches, apples, used clothing. Anything I could get my hands on without being caught." The clouded leopard gripped Ming's shoulder a little but relaxed them with a sigh. "And then one night, when it was raining hard, and I had not been able to get my hands on anything to eat for about a week I hear the sound of someone coming from down the street. Ming was sent out by her foster parents to gather shopping; they did not care of the harshness of the weather! They just sent her right out!" The feline growled and looked away, taking a few slow breaths and feeling his wife's paw on his own. "Anyway, everyone had packed up and made for their homes. At least that's what I thought. I watched from the corner of an alley, wondering if I should break my cover and charge Ming. Unfortunately someone beat me to it. A group of drunken thugs from the old tavern had appeared. They surrounded Ming; I could see the sick smile on their faces. I knew what they wanted, and it was not the food. One of them first knocked the bag from her hands and then struck Ming across the face." Tai Lung halted for a minute, his eyes wandering. Shifu and Po could see there was more to this story, something not good. "Her scream had been enough; I ran in and tore at those animals, doing anything to keep them away from Ming. I won't lie to you, I did kill them. But it was of good nature knowing that she was safe. I turned to help Ming to her feet, but she was looking around widely. It was only when I asked if she was alright that she swung for me. There was a flash of lighting; I then saw what was wrong. The one who had struck Ming had used his claws; he had cut at her eyes. She became blind instantly."

Tears now came freely as Ming hid her face in her paws and sobbed uncontrollably. Viper and Fu covered their mouths and fought back tears of their own. Tigress and Shifu all clenched their paws into fists. The rest of the kung fu masters stared with wide eyes. Hao was just as stunned, feeling his own multicoloured orbs tenderly.

As for Po, the panda was so filled with anger at the men who ruined Ming's eyes that he shot to his feet and strode a good distance away from the group, standing by the window out looking the front of the house and the forest. His wooden staff was leaning by the doorway just next to him. Po never took his gaze from the starlit sky above, trying to focus his attention on the night sky without imagining the horror of what Tai Lung had just described. With a steel tone, the panda asked. "What happened next?"

"I took her to the nearest doctor." Tai Lung spoke on, his voice slightly broken, kneeling down and wrapping his tree trunk arms around his wife: Ming did not hold back the cries as she buried herself in her husband's chest. "It was certain, her blindness. I decided to stay with her whilst she recovered- something forced me to never leave her- it's not something I can explain. I told her what I did to those men and that I saved her. I remembered that she smiled. Days past and she and I talked- mainly speaking of my past, as you already know. And when we weren't talking I helped her with all the essentials that she needed."

Mantis raised an eyebrow. "_All_ the essentials?"

Tai Lung's lips were straight and he bobbed his head. "Yes, everything. Eating, walking and finding the bathroom_, everything_."

"Oh." The insect replied. "Wow."

Ming's cries were beginning to falter to just little hiccups of whimpers. "I asked the doctor how long she would have to stay: he said at least a few weeks, time for the wounds to heal. I asked Ming if she had anywhere to stay. Her answer was no. I soon found out, like you guys have, as to why. And so, I left Ming in the care of the medical staff whilst I came out into the woods and began constructing this place." He motioned to the household around them. "I did not care for looks, for Ming's sake, but made it safe, living and warm. Giving her the proper home she never had. I had it finished quickly. Then, getting a job with one of the local farmers, I managed to pay for such things like kitchen utensils and a bed or two. By the time Ming was allowed to leave and the wounds had healed into scars, I took her in my arms and brought her here." Tai Lung nuzzled his wife who had managed to cease her crying.

Ming muzzled him back and finished the story off. "I never returned to my foster home- I never wanted to- Tai Lung took care of me. For a year we lived together, and soon found that were made for each other. I know it's not tradition but Little Shen was conceived before we got married. But it was because of us knowing, when the signs showed, that we were the right couple. We held the marriage in secret and been together ever since. Our son was born nine months later.

"A-and how old is he now?" Shifu asked.

"Three months. You're a Ye Ye, Shifu: you're a grandfather." Tai Lung beamed.

The sage red panda slumped back into his chair and ran a small hand across his head. "I'm a grandfather." He said with a smile, chuckling before parroting the same words again. "I'm a grandfather!"

There was a matter of laughter now rising from around the table, even Tigress smiled.

"But..." Viper interrupted politely as the giggles and chuckles settled. "...there's one thing I just don't get."

Tai Lung hung his head a little and looked up through his eyebrows at the kung fu masters with a sincere glance. "How did I survive the Wushi Finger Hold?"

Viper nodded.

From the front of the house, Po's lively jade eyes slightly twitched. He gazed down from the stars and looked just over his shoulder at the table basking in the light of the candles and the lantern hanging from the ceiling. His eyes then caught sight of his walking staff standing idol aside to him and the front door just beside that. With one glance back at the table, Po moved away from the window.

Well the thing is..." Tai Lung began as he took a moment on how to explain his next set of words. "...I was never affected by the Wushi Finger Hold."

"What? How?" Shifu bellowed as he sprang forward in his chair, leaning against the table.

Tai Lung rose up a paw for a change to speak. "The reason is because, by no means, did it ever happen. Po never performed the technique."

The kung fu masters, Fu and Hao looked at each other, astonished.

"He just let me go."

All the kung fu master turned in their seats as Tai Lung looked up past the table to the front of the house, hoping to see the large panda still standing by the window: he was not there, nor his walking staff.

The front door was ajar.


	11. Find Yourself

Is Love Safe?

Chapter Eleven- Find Yourself

Fu, Hao, Ming, Chen Hue Leigh (C) mine.

* * *

Po's steps were heavy, the fallen autumn leaves softly crunched underneath his feet with every step he took, a broken trail in his wake. His eyes looked down as he wandered aimlessly amongst the tall trees of the forest depths. The night air was cool against his fur, brushing through ever strand on his cheeks with a gentle stroke of a breeze that danced amongst the tall tree; the moon's luminosity slicing through the gaps in the branches and down onto the floor in rays of white light. Po's glowing green eyes trained on his feet as he walked onwards, his staff in paw, with an unconscious mind.

A gust of air burst through rushed past the panda and ruffled his long fur. Po shivered and wrapped his arms around himself. Having forgotten his cloak the Dragon Warrior swore under his breath- the words coming out in a vapour of warm air and evaporating into nothing-metaphorically ridding him of just one troubling thought amongst the many that swirled in his mind like a whirlpool.

The monochromatic bear sighed deeply.

Finally slowing his insentient walk to a halt Po stood in the basking glow of a moonlight ray, casting a great shadow down on the white-lit forest floor. Po stared at his outline of gloom, noticing the changes of his body's outline. Something began to build up in the panda's stomach, something that soon exploded in a firecracker of emotions: regret, anger, hatred, disgust, love all of them tearing at him from the inside out, wanting to be set free and unleashed upon the world. Po though he was going to lose his mind and inadvertently slip back into his feral state again. It was quite the other way.

The staff in his paw was heavy, it hurt his wrist to keep a hold of.

His knees ached and he felt like a entire weight of armour was strapped to his shoulders, pulling him down to the earth. The panda dropped the staff and was quick to follow as he collapsed o his knees; like the stars above, fresh tears fought their way out his eyes and down his cheek. Sobs chocked at his throat with an iron grip, his chest tightened as if tied with rope. With glassy orbs, Po gazed skyward through the break in the leaves, the full moon that loomed overhead bore down with a pallid face and curved smile. Po could bear it no longer; this was not the first time he had unintentionally had a breakdown- nor did he believe it to be the last.

Things had never gone back to the way they were in the Jade palace after the group's return from the snowy mountains of the Dragon's Pass.

More tears fought their way upfront, Po shakily gasped.

The wounds that he had obtained on the journey over a year ago had left more than just scars and flesh wounds in the kung fu master's eyes. Po could still see all the blood that violated the purity of the white snow, feel the pain of his skin being cut, torn and ripped at. When the gang had returned to the Jade Palace, thus fulfilling Po's promise of returning the panda, it was never the same. Quite unusual for the optimistic bear, Po would usually draw in on himself whenever he met eye to eye with any of the kung fu masters or Shifu. Tigress was the hardest to look at the most, not because of the bite injuries that she had sustained during the fight with Chen Leigh, but what those wounds represented. The feeling of loss and being alone in the world, it always struck the panda harder and more deeper than any blade could. At times, like now, Po would discretely slip away and find a place of sanctuary that would allow him to pour his heart out openly in grief and sorrow.

For weeks at a time, his emotional breakdowns went unheard and unseen. He never wanted the others to see of his weakness, he couldn't bear it.

The nights were just as bad, or worse, than the breakdowns. For the first few days since their return the panda would scrape, toss and turn in his bed. His claws would scratch and swipe widely as his dreams toyed and played with his mind, some ending with him snapping awake and finding his body doused in sweat. Other nights he would just lie there, staring up at the wooden ceiling and try not to think too much on the memories, but the harder he forced to push them away the greater they would return and claw at his mind.

The tears had now brought on hollow cries, the panda sniffed, still never taking his eyes from the sky.

The months went by, and when Tigress moved into his room there was no hiding it from her. The first night together Po bolted upright and screamed to the heavens, his body covered in sweat. Tigress was instantly awake at his side. With a soft face and a inviting paw, the pair silently walked to the kitchen. With a cup of tea in each of their paws, Tigress gently coaxed Po into telling her all that had happened to him. She was silent, understanding, saying nothing as she listened to every word the distraught panda had to say. After he finished, the striped feline took her time to set her cup aside, take the bear's huge paws in her own and give the simple- yet prevailing- words saying that no matter what, she was by his side.

Po was still at her reply, his face sagging but held up with a little smile. His eyes were unblinking, hypnotic at the moment in their effect. Tigress could see he was thankful for her support, though he did not say it. The drop of his eyes to his paws said to the feline he was still doubtful of himself. So, getting from her seat and walking round to hug her lover's neck from behind, Po was hesitant to respond to her touch but slipped up a paw and cupped her cheek, stroking the fur with a resilient touch. They stayed there till both agreed it was time to head back to bed.

And now, kneeling before the forest, Po dropped his head and shook it violently. Tears whipped from his face and fell to the floor around him. With his teeth clenched and throat dry the panda let out the wave of emotions swirling inside of him in the form of a anguishing roar.

Now leaning forward on his front paws, Po cried hard. The tears cascading down his cheeks, matting down the fur and falling to the floor in little puddle on the crisp dry leaves. The panda's heart thumped and beat against his chest like a drum, threatening to burst through his ribcage. Po brought up a paw to his chest and grasped at the waist coat covering his fur and heart. He paused, feeling something solid against his paw, hiding underneath the cloth. Slipping his finger inside, he felt a pocket and something in the shape of a box against his claws. Gripping the small cube, forgetting about his current state, Po held it flat in his palm in the moonlight. He flipped open the lid of the box and found himself starring at the proposal ring he had bought.

He had completely forgotten that he had kept the trinket in his coat pocket. He first swore at not remembering to keep it back at the palace where it was safe. But what then happened seemed, even at the time, like an inevitable natural circumstance of all that had gone before. Looking deeply into the ring, he saw the oblong shape of his face starring back. But it was not the tear stricken, grieving face he wore presently, more like a second face- a reflecting persona- that bore the significant little-lost boy smile and glittering jade eyes of a panda who stood tall and proud of himself. Though Po's lips did not move, the reflection seemed to speak words to him quietly, as if whispering right in his ear.

"Don't give in now. Stand Up. Fight. You. Are. The Dragon Warrior! Fight!" The reflection encouraged with a indomitable voice. "Fight!"

Po's green eyes hardened as the same word kept on echoing in his ears. Fight. Fight. _Fight!_ The panda tightened his lips, brushing the surface of the golden ring with his thumb. When he saw the reflection of himself again in the jewellery the hardened face was gone. Now only seeing how he truly looked the Dragon Warrior closed the box, sitting back on his haunches and tucking the ring away back inside his coat pocket, he wiped his eyes with the back of his paw and sniffed. He pinched the bridge of his nose and glanced aside to the mangled form of his staff lying in the border of the darkness of the forest and the shine of the light.

Po reached over and clasped the wooden stick in his paw it was light in his grip; bringing it up to his body, he got to his feet. With a tight lip stuck in the form of a grin, Po stood with a new determination in his eyes. The panda turned on the balls of his heels and strode off back through the darkened woods. He didn't need to know where he was going, something told inside his head, like whispering in his ear, drawing back to the place where he was most needed.

Soon the lights of Tai Lung's house glimmered in the distance, Po walked back on the path leading up to the building. He stopped for a moment and looked back over his shoulder, into the gloom of the forest where realisation had struck. Then with a new smile spreading across his muzzle, his heart racing so fast it merely seemed impossible for him to keep still, Po sprang on the tips of his toes and ran as fast as he could to the front door.

When Po burst into the house, everyone jumped- scared at the sudden intrusion. All eyes were drawn to the panda as he stood in the doorway.

Shifu was on his feet. "Po! Where have you been?"

But the Dragon Warrior was not listening. He heard nothing but the rapid beat of his own heart. His jade eyes danced from person to person, searching for the one feline he wanted to lay eyes on the most. He spotted her, across the room, furthest from him in the shadows of the candles. Her eyes burned brightly, showing relief and happiness in their blaze. Po's orbs connected with her own, and with a powerful stride in his step the panda walked up to Tigress, dropping his staff in the process before taking Tigress' cheeks in his paws and planting a lustful, longing kiss on her lips before she could get a word in.

Apart from Ming- who only could listen as to what was going on- the rest of the group's jaws dropped as Po continued to kiss the striped kung fu master in full view. Fu was just as stunned as the others and Tai Lung that she didn't even bother to cover Hao's eyes.

The pair finally separated, forgetting of the audience watching. All that Tigress could see was the sparkle in Po's eyes, telling her everything that he wanted now and then. Tigress felt a tingle of pleasure run up her spine and flush her cheeks a rosy red. She instantly said yes through her eyes. Po acknowledged her acceptance and swept the feline off her feet. Carrying her bridal style, the couple smiled at each other before Tigress took the panda into another passionate kiss. Walking into the only room available, Po closed the door behind them with his foot.

The main room was in an occupation of astonished silence. Everyone's mouths agape. It was all so sudden and unexpected.

Ming, having fully understood what occurred through her heightened sense of hearing, giggled. "Sounds like somebody is in for a lucky night."


	12. Some things Change

Is Love Safe?

Chapter Twelve- Some things Change

Jai, Shen, Leo, Ling, Fu, Hao and Chen (c) mine

* * *

The tent was small and cramped; Shen had to lay diagonal to its shape in order to prevent his feet from lying outside in the cold snow. Deep in an unconscious sleep the panther writhed beneath the thin blanket half wrapped around his body. Sweat sparkled on his bare chest and arms, matting the fur down. The feline rolled onto his side and curled in on himself as he reached out with his paw and gripped the flooring of the tent, grunting through his teeth he sprang out his claws and drew his paw in towards him. "No..." He groaned. "No...No! Hao..." His breathing was shallow, quickening as his heart beat against the bandages covering his torso, threatening to burst free.

Shen's bloodshot eyes blasted open and his body sat upright, rigid. "Fu!" He cried, panting heavily and starring straight forward. Coming back into the present, Shen brought his knees up and raised a paw to his head, wiping away the sweat and sighing into the palm. Shen dragged his claws slowly down his face, feeling their sharpness running through his black fur and trail over his eyelids. The tingle of pain turned Shen's mind away from his nightmare. He inhaled deeply and shakily sighed once more.

Opening his eyes he could see that the flaps at the front of his tent were open. A large hulking silhouette sat crouched in the opening, a pair of emerald-cut orbs glowing in the moonlight and looking right at Shen.

It was Ling.

Shen's shoulders dropped and he couldn't be bothered to even glare at the snow leopard. Ling jerked his head and grunted. Shen drew breath in through his nose and ripped the cover of his body. He grabbed his brown vest and pulled it over his chest. It was cold against his hot body. Getting out of his tent the two felines positioned as guards stood on either side of Shen as the panther stretched out his aching muscles.

Ling sniffed and turned with a grunt, walking off to the centre of the camp.

Shen followed with the duo of felines trailing behind him. The panther took a moment to look around; everyone in the camp had vanished into their tents for the night. Ling was doing the same. Something didn't feel right about the campus. Something cold and unsettling lurked in the chilly air.

Dismissing the thought Shen's orbs looked down to the snow floor at the crunching sound his feet made as they broke the surface; the white ground flourished in tiny glitters. Craning his neck and glancing skyward, Shen saw the moon in full bloom as it stared down on him from the heavens. He was mystified by its shine in the starry night sky. A thought came to mind, hopefully, somewhere safe and as far away from these criminals as possible Fu was more likely staring up at the same moon. Entrapping its gleam inside his eyes, Shen was shoved by one of the felines forward. Shen growled but looked onwards as he found Ling walking up to the large canopy that was the panther's sister's tent.

Ling brushed the covers aside and slipped into the shelter. With an extra push from the felines behind, Shen ducked and joined the snow leopard inside. The two bodyguards remained outside. Being the first time that Shen had been inside Jai's tent the feline scanned the interior with awe and jealousy. His sister's idea of sleeping like royalty made Shen tingle with envy at the fact he was placed inside a tent too small for his size. It also made him wonder- he was no sexist- but how was it that Jai, a female, became the leader of a mass of ruthless brutes?

The inside was warmer than the exterior of the sheltering, Shen only realising this by how his claws felt numb in the warmth. His eyes darted from corner to corner of the large tent with inspecting glances. He was rather impressed. Ling had walked over to the Commander sitting on her stool by the table, with the towering form of Leo at her side. All their attention was drawn to something on the counter.

Shen's eye went around the entire tent, coming to rest on the rack of weapons sitting left of the table from Jai, Leo and Ling. Drawn to the weapons, like in a trance, the feline cocked his head to the side and walked to the rack. Once within reaching distance Shen's paw outstretched and hovered over the blades of the throwing knives. Picking up one of the knives from its sheath he stroked the reflecting surface, it felt light and strong in his paw. The feline took in a deep breath as he felt a surge of energy run from the knife and into his body. Shen shuddered is slight bliss- it felt good to hold one of these again.

Putting the blade back, brushing his paw over the scarlet feathered quivers of arrows and feeling the smoothened yet firm wood of the bow, Shen drew his eyes to the erect handle of Jai's sword; marvelled by the dragon's open jaw and the majestic curl of the golden laced snaking its way across the grip. All excited by the inexplicable vibe from touching the blade of the throwing knife, Shen couldn't help but watch as his paw gradually slid around the weapon's handle, gripping it firmly. The surge of adrenaline already shot through his body like an electric shock. With a silent gasp and a firm jaw Shen gave a mighty tug and freed the blade from its scabbard prison.

Properly holding the weapon just before his face, Shen followed the long silver blade up: seeing the sharpness in its design along the double sided cutting edge all the way to the top. He squinted into the blade and saw his reflection splay back at him. After a while a second face appeared by the Black Panther, focusing into the reflection of the blade from over Shen's shoulder.

"Beautiful..." Jai's delicate voice spoke into Shen's ear. "...isn't it?"

The feline looked out the corner of his eye to the lioness standing just in the wake of him, her breath tickling the fur on Shen's back. He glanced back at the sword in his paw before humming a low 'hmmm' and sheathing the blade once more. "For display only?" He replied.

"Oh no!" The lioness shook her head. "Much more than that; a personal favourite of our family, kept for generation after generation."

"What do you know of our family?" Shen growled. "You don't know anything, you're a killer. Nothing more!"

Jai tilted her head to the side and allowed a devilish smirk cross her muzzle. "Like you, brother?"

The Black Panther snarled. She had him there. "Don't call me brother? I'm not your brother."

"Still in denial after finding out the truth, are we Shen?"

The Black Panther turned fully to the lioness, and finding himself to be slightly taller than her, stared down into her burning ember eyes with a hardened frown. He looked the female once over and found her to be quite attractive for a lioness. Now out of the shade of her cloak Shen could see that she wore a simple red long-sleeved top that clung to her body showing off the natural curves of a perfect woman's body and baggy black pants donning her lower waist. Shen brought his eyes back up to meet Jai in a stone-lock gaze. He lowered a sceptical eyebrow. "What is it to you?"

The older feline chuckled hollowly and turned to her desk, swaying her hips to exploit her physical demeanour further of that matching a classical woman but with the dominant, wild like spirit of a dragon. She unsheathed her black claws and intimidating dragged them through the wood. "More than what it means to you, _brother_." Jai growled. "I have suffered much more in my lifetime than you will ever. It was me against the world, and the world is losing the battle. I have followed you ever since the day our mother gave birth to you, Shen. I know everything about your life and your family." Jai turned her head to Shen and grinned out the corner of her mouth. "I was even present at your wedding."

The Black Panther stepped forward. "That's not possible." He snarled. Leo raised an eyebrow at the feline and stroked his furry chin, his red eyes unfaltering as they watched Shen. Ling gripped the handle of his long sword perched on his waist, sliding it out of the scabbard a bit to warn Shen of where he stood in the situation. The Black Panther seemed to get the message and stopped in his tracks. "How could you have been at my wedding? It was secret, private. No one knew about it besides my wife, son, me and my brother."

Jai was standing next to Leo. "Oh, yes how is Tai Lung. In good health I believe?"

From the sidelines, Ling's hardened face fell in shock. His cheeks flushed a dim red and his green eyes widened slightly. For a moment the snow leopard had lost his entire complexion. His shoulder tensed up, the fur of his body bristled with anxiety and his throat went dry. The spotted feline was quick to recompose himself before Jai, Leo or Shen caught sight of the change in his character.

Shen's eyes narrowed. "How do you know of Tai Lung is alive?"

Jai gave another victorious coy grin. "You just told me."

Shen swore under his breath and flushed slightly from giving away the answer so easily. "But how did you know of Tai Lung being my brother?" He asked.

The lioness walked up to Shen, standing within arm's reach of him. She lifted up a claw and poked the centre of Shen's head. "Is this brain of yours not working? I've already told you I've known everything about your life. I even know of your little trip in these mountains over...Ohh when was it... a year ago?"

Shen tried to play dumb on this one. "What are you talking about?"

Leo peacefully strode towards the duo, arms masterfully resting behind his back. "We know you remember, Shen." His voice was slow paced. Jai broke away and walked back to her desk. Leo encircled Shen, like a predator about to devour its prey. Shen followed the great wolf with his eyes. "I was with Commander Wu the entire time. We moved with secrecy, blending in with the gathering crowd in the market of the Xi'an village, sitting at the back of the bar as we watched you and Chen talk, inspecting your means of strategy at the Thread of Hope." Leo stopped for a short moment in front of Shen. The feline glared up through his eyebrows at him. Leo was unfazed by the stare. He continued his walk. Jai sat on her table like a little schoolgirl. Ling was poised with his arms crossed over his chest.

"Day and night we trailed you, all the more enticed by your sudden change of appearance from a lion to a panther: a cleaver and deceptive move. I bet it must have been hard to keep yourself from killing the Dragon Warrior or Master Shifu off with their backs turned. And yet you still continued to help them, even after you found out about your mother. Ohh, tough." He smiled knowingly at Jai who only nodded her head and bit onto her thumb through an evil smirk. "And then when it came to fighting the Thousand Arrows on the mountain side." Leo gave a low whistle in Shen's ear. The panther grunted and jerked his head away. "Man. It was like watching a show with a front row seat. We watched you all fight, even when the Dragon Warrior went feral- something that really astonished me and the Commander- all coming down to that little moment when Chen Leigh had been slaughtered."

Shen was beginning to get agitated, his heart thumped hard in his chest and his tail twitched irritatingly.

Leo noticed all of this and broadened his grin.

"Those few minute, when the truth was all but was confessed." The wolf dramatically shook his head. "I can't imagine the pain you must have felt that day. To know already know that your mother was killed by the very guy you had hired and that he was actually your biological father. And that you had just lost him too. Oh, the pain must have been excruciating!"

Leo had reached Shen deeply. Tears crawled their way from the feline's eyes. Shen tried to stop them from coming but it was too late. Clenching his eyes shut the crystal drops of water fell from Shen's eyes and down his cheeks.

Leo nodded to Jai as he walked away to stand next to Ling. Jai jumped off from her table and moved up to Shen. She stood now inches from his body inclining her head to see the feline's face. She saw his eyes were closed. Sighing through her nose, Jai cupped Shen's cheek in a flat paw and raised his head so that he looked straight at her. The lioness could see that the hard wall of which her brother had been holding strong for so long had eventually broken and crumbled in his eyes.

She patted his muzzle affectionately yet held a strong gaze in her eyes as she spoke. A hint of tenderness appeared in her voice. "Shen, I know it hurts to lose the ones you love. I know what it's like to feel alone in the world, but our family will always be alive as long as we have each other. It's time for us to continue our parents' work and show this country what is really meant by the power of love." Jai sucked in a long breath when Shen did not reply. She pushed his face aside and strode past to the entrance flaps of the tent. "Or we can keep on fighting each other and destroy the last remnants of what they have taken so long to achieve. Now I couldn't care less for your wife, son or Tai Lung."

Ling's eyes thinned to slits.

"But I am going to do whatever it takes in order for you to join my group. I am Commander of these brutes; they will not defy my word. Not if their life depends on it. I mean it, brother." Jai turned to face Shen. Her face was scrunched in a nasty snarl and her eyes screamed a serious complexion. "If it means that I have to take extra measurements then so be it. But I _will_ turn you and you _will_ become one of us.

Shen raised his head and looked down his nose to his older sister. "You can't change a person's heart, _Jai_."

The lioness hissed at using her name so openly infront of Ling and Leo, she stepped extremely close to her brother. Her voice excreted toxic venom that was so cold, so menacing it made Ling's tail shudder and Leo smile lustfully. "Who's going to stop me? I _am _the leader! _I_ am the Commander! I. Am – _Augh_!"

Jai screeched agonisingly as her body jolted onto Shen. On instinct the panther caught Jai in his arms at the sudden fling of her body onto him. Leo gasped. Ling growled deeply and drew his sword, rushing infront of his Commander. Leo rushed to Jai's side. Both men glanced down on the lioness to see a long black arrow protruding from the back of her shoulder. She was alive. Leo's blood red eyes glowed and his lips curled in a snarl.

"We have to go!" He barked.

Shen looked up to the lupine with wide eyes daring to shed more tears at the sight of seeing his sister hurt. "What's going on?"

Leo glanced out past the flaps of the tent. A blast of wind passed the canopy and brushed the opening flap s aside. Shen looked up in time to see a battle had ensued on the campus in the moonlight.

"Hei Xin, you betrayer!" Leo growled viciously at the short glimpse. "He's coming to kill Jai."


	13. Sacrifice

Is Love Safe?

Chapter Thirteen- Sacrifice

Jai, Shen, Leo, Hei Xin and Ling (C) mine

* * *

"Look out!" Leo shouted to Ling. The snow leopard was taking a side glance down on his wounded Commander when the general drew his attention back to the situation at hand. One of Hei Xin's men jumped through the flaps of the canopy opening and swung for Ling but the feline was twice as quick and ducked, drawing his sword across the attacker's stomach. The creature let out a agonising squeal and collapsed down to the floor next to Shen.

The Black Panther looked to the dead body and then to Leo. "What should we do?"

At first Leo didn't respond. He just stared, but soon Leo blinked. Positioning himself above Jai the wolf placed one of his large paws on the lioness' back around the arrow protruding from her shoulder, the thin body of the arrow slipped between his fingers. He snarled and took hold of the arrow with his other paw. "Hold her!" Although the lupine was looking down on Jai's unconscious body Shen knew that it was he who Leo was speaking to. The Black Panther moved and held his sister close to his chest. Leo gripped the arrow tighter, but he paused.

Shen glanced to the wolf. "What are you waiting for?"

Leo did not hear him nor the battle that raged on outside in the camp. His entire attention was focused on his mate lying in Shen's arms. Her eyes softly closed and her face so calm the wolf almost thought that she was already dead. But he refused to give into the idea that Jai was gone, he just would not let her go. She was fighter, never backing away from a battle. She had survived every hardship life could throw at her, one little arrow was not going to be the end of her. The fear in Leo's bloody eyes vanished and was replaced by a yearning to hold her, alive, once more. Gritting his teeth and leaning down on the lioness' body, Leo gave one firm yank and pulled the arrow from Jai's shoulder. "There!"

The lioness roared slightly in pain. But the comforting hold of Shen's arms around her body soothed her nerves. Jai was still alive, Leo confirmed it, but if she – or any of them- stayed here there would be no sight of the next sunrise. Leo threw the arrow aside and literally snatched Jai from Shen's hold. He gently cradled the female in his massive arms, bridal style, being of no weight to match his alpha male strength. The wolf got to his feet. Shen followed. Leo's white mask hardened as he turned to Black Panther. "Grab Jai's weapons. You'll need them." He moved Jai to the table and fetched a few of her various cloaks. He tore at one and tied a makeshift sling and bandage around her shoulder before using the rest to cover her body from the cold conditions of the mountain's pass that they were shoe-in for.

Shen did not bother arguing with Leo. These were dangerous times and he was going to need all the weapons he could get his paws on, he moved to the rack. Ling joined him and immediately took the bow and arrow. Shen was about to take the weapons when ling had intervened and snatched it from the rack. The two feline's shared a lock of eyes. Ling' green orbs pierced Shen like gems, and the panther's in turn burned into the snow leopard. There was something familiar about the clouded leopard's eyes, Shen had seen them before somewhere, but he could not place them at the time. Almost determined to protest and take the bow back, Shen restrained himself as he then felt a slight stinging sensation in his shoulder. The panther thought back to the night he was kidnapped: how he believed to be out of firing range yet was surprisingly struck by the snow leopard's far-shot arrow. Ling had class and professionalism, no denying it. Shen tightened his jaw and stood aside as he watched Ling break the stare-down. He walked off and began to tie on the extra attire.

Shen furrowed his eyebrows and took the throwing knives, tightening the belt around his waist. The set was light, almost felt like nothing on his side. He then took the sword in its scabbard and tied it on his other hip. Shen felt like he had over a year ago with so many blades surrounding his body like a steel shield: made him feel like a god inside. He smirked a little and turned to find Leo walking at his side with Jai wrapped in a few cloaks, lying in his arms and drifting in and out of consciousness. Shen and Leo joined eyes and nodded to each other. Ling followed the other side. Leo looked between them. "I'll take Jai. I'm the strongest and the fastest. We must move swiftly. Hei's men are skilled archers and fighters. We'll run for the forest on the edge of the camp site. We'll lose them amongst the trees. If we can make it deep enough into the forest before sunrise then there's a chance."

Shen drew Jai's sword. Ling took his Commander's bow in hand. But Shen hesitated noticed something about the wolf standing aside him. He raised an eyebrow. "Where are your swords?"

Leo allowed himself a smile of pride and chuckled, shaking his slightly. Shen even discretely spotted a smirk tug at Ling's lips. "Trust me, Shen. After you see what I can do, a blade will seem useful as a blunt twig." The great lupine said.

The panther closed his muzzle and asked no more, both out of fear to finding out the answer and curious to wonder what Leo meant. Well either way, he was about to find out. "Alright," Shen spoke as he picked out a few of the throwing knives and held them close to his face between his fingers. "...let's go!"

Shen and Ling went first, bursting from the safety of the tent and running into the open battlefield that was once the sleeping campus. Leo followed close behind them both with Ling held close to his chest. All three of the males looked out and around the campus with both solemn gazes and hardened eyes. The peace and serenity of the assailants' head base was all but ruined of its subtlety: battle cries, agonising squeals and threatening howls filled the once still yet enduringly sharp winter air. Everything was a blur, animals took on other animals. Shen had a hard time figuring out which was which. To him they were all the same. The virgin white snow was stained red with blood from fallen victims that lay sprawl out across the camp.

Shen, Ling and Leo did not even get a few steps out of the tent before they had become the centre of attention to all of Hei's men. Those lusting for a fight, the burning fire in their eyes and teeth dripping for the urge to taste blood, charged for the felines and wolf. Shen made the first move, swinging his arm in an arc and sending the multiple of throwing knives into three oncoming men. The trio of bodies unfortunate to be in the projectiles' paths drop instantly to the floor: more were eager to take their place, jumping over the bodies and drawing closer. On Ling's side, the snow leopard had drawn two arrows from his belt. The feline tore at the feathers of the projectiles with his teeth, spitting the useless feather out his mouth and quickly drew the duo projectiles up against the string. He spotted his two targets, though far separate from each they were, and released the string. Both animals dropped dead with the evidence of Jai's arrows sticking from their bodies. Ling caught site of a strike coming his way grasped at his sword with a free paw drawing the long blade out its sheath in time to lock blades with his next adversary.

Leo did not hesitate to help Ling on Shen; he knew what his aim was. Shen and Ling could handle themselves; he had to get Jai away from Hei Xin by any means possible. But having quickly come to like the panther, and with Ling being a long time friend of Leo the wolf glanced over his shoulder and was reassured when he caught both felines running just in his trail. The great lupine looked ahead and weaved his way in and out of the multitude of tents littering the mountain's side. His blood red eyes glowed like rubies with the moon's luminescent light shone down on them. Leo's vision increased and he could see the tips of the wood's towering trees begin to show over the folds of the tents.

He glanced over his shoulder once more. Ling had drawn another arrow; he turned and fired, striking at the closest follower who chased after the gang. Shen brought up more throwing knives; he leapt into a spin through the air and threw with professional accuracy into the legs of a few more of Hei Xin's men. The creatures fell to the floor clutching their knees and screaming to the star filled heavens. That was the last of them who had tried to follow. The rest were still back where the action was- killing of Jai's section of men like rodents. Shen dropped to his feet and caught up with Ling and Leo.

The fleers had reached the edge of the camp and were now in the wide open. "Keep going!" The panther shouted. "We're almost there!"

Neither Leo nor Ling needed the incentive; their chance of escape was so close. But Leo still felt an unsettling tightness in his stomach. They weren't home free yet, and there was something else that came to mind as the wolf ran through the snow: where was Hei Xin, there was not one sight of the bird in all the commotion. It made Leo's fur shudder.

There was a sudden pierce in the air. It was a high animalistic screech that made Leo's white mask freeze realisation and his ear sink against his skull. A familiar cry pierced the wolf's flattened ears. Leo halted his run and turned watch as Ling flew overhead in the malicious claws of one of Hei Xin's eagles. "Ling! No!" Leo shouted as he watched his friend go higher into the sky.

Shen had rolled out of the way when he noticed the shadow of the eagle swooping in, ducking in the snow just as the bird dove in and snatched Ling off the floor. The panther got to his feet and ran after Ling and the eagle, throwing one of his knives at the avian but it missed. Shen cursed and bolted up to Leo. The general's bellow of defiance shook Shen. He watched as the lupine lowered Jai to the snowy floor and leapt after Ling and the eagle. Shen stayed with Jai, growling at the fact Leo would leave his sister in her current condition. And yet, surprisingly, his amazement had overpowered the anger as he witnessed the wolf prove his words.

Leo's speed, as he ran across the snow on all fours, was unbelievable. The large wolf moved so swiftly across the open mountain side that from Shen's view he was nothing but a grey blur atop the white carpet. Although he could not see it, Leo's ashen mask has lost its entire calm, unruffled demeanour and had been replaced by a mixture of rage, fury and resentment. A face of dark horror. When almost directly underneath the eagle, Leo looked up and saw Ling hanging from its claws. The feline had dropped Jai's bow and now swung his sword at whatever he could, but it was ineffective in his position. Leo snarled and curled up his lips to reveal the rows of fangs as white as the snow and gums as purple as a plum. Using the power in his strong hind legs, Leo sprang from the ground and grasped the underbelly of the eagle. His jaw clamped down on the shoulder of the avian who, in turn, shrieked as he felt Leo's teeth sink deep into his neck and razor sharp claws tore at his chest.

The large bird felt no use of his wing and lost control of the sky, collapsing to the ground in a bundle of feathers, bodies and snow. Shen saw them land nastily in the snow a small distance away. The Black Panther felt a slight worry for Leo and, to a lesser extent, Ling. He picked up Jai in his arms and sprinted for the crash.

As the feline drew nearer he came to see that Leo and the bird were still going at it against each other. There was no sign of Ling, but a large crater in the snow from the harsh landing. The panther decided to remain good space away from the fight at hand, not matter how much it drew his interest.

Leo was hunched on all fours, hovering low to the ground as he circled in the snow; eyes never leaving the hissing eagle opposite him. With a deep snarl Leo made the first move, leaping forward and colliding against the charging bird. The duo met and fell into the snow, the pale powder being kicked up by the eagle's large wings as Leo managed to pin the bird on his back. Shen watched in awe as the lupine clawed and mauled for his enemies' chest without the slightest hint of mercy. With a dreadful growl and a show of his fangs catching the gleam of the moonlight, Leo sunk his head down and bit hard into his adversary's throat. He tore back and pulled a gruesome chunk of flesh with it. The enemy underneath writhed and wailed in gurgles, his body twitching as the blood flowed from his half ripped neck and into a pool on the ice; the red liquid being so warm, the cold floor began to melt as it gathered.

Leo dropped the raw flesh in his mouth to the floor and arched over the bird, eyes rigid and raging a ruthless red. He watched pitilessly as the dying creature beneath his hefty body ceased its twitching and grew still in the snow. Leo stretched out his body over the dead adversary and raised his head to the stars, the moon catching his being in a white aura glow. The general lifted his head higher. As Leo stared up at the stars he let out a ferocious howl so loud and angry and full of spite that the air seemed to shake in his call.

Shen stood there motionless, frozen by the horror and audacity of Leo's howl. The truth could not be rejected: Leo was feral. The panther could not bring himself to turn away and run. Run as far as he could get from Leo and the ruthless criminals that he associated with, Jai would be safe and his. If only he turned and ran. But he didn't, something told him to stay still in the snow, like a voice in his ear, whispering to wait.

Leo's voice faded into the cold night. His head dropped, muzzle stained bright with fresh blood and eyes glistening. The lupine stood onto his hind legs again, chest heaving deeply in and out. Leo turned his eyes to Shen. The feline tensed his muscles, reminiscing how Po had been so merciless when he fought and killed Chen, turning then to strike down Shifu and the Furious Five without restraint. That is what Shen now feared above anything else, but as the wolf turned to him a long smile showed through the bloody lips.

"_That_, Shen, is why I don't need my weapons." Leo said in his redeemed calm, controlled tone.

Shen didn't know what to say after witnessing such brutality. How could a creature that slipped into a feral state so easily be drawn back to its normal manner? It wasn't possible, was it? Shen didn't get to ask or even answer his own question when a yelp of pain came from crater in the snow. Leo jumped down to the floor and sprinted to the fissure as he caught sight of Ling's body walking out of the hole and collapsing onto the floor. Leo slide down to Ling's side and rolled the snow leopard onto his back. Leo's ears fell. Ling's body was all but fine, except for the curled eagle's claw that had snapped off and lodged itself in the feline's chest, just above where his heart was. Blood soaked his tattered ashen coat and clothes. Ling gurgled and a trail of red liquid ran down his muzzle.

"No..." Leo shook his head, growling. "No, Ling. No!"

"No time, Leo." Ling panted. "You must go, save the Commander. Hei Xin will kill her. You must get her to safety!" The snow leopard grunted and arched his back, taking in a hissing breath.

Leo lowered his head. "No! I'm not abandoning you."

Ling chuckled a little and flashed a set of blood stained teeth. "You never did."

The wolf looked lost. "W-what about your boy, don't you want to see him again?"

Ling's body relaxed a little and his breath grew shallower. He looked slightly at ease. From the sideline, Shen could only watch and wonder. The clouded leopard sighed. "Yes, I would have loved to see him, one more time. But I will again, my friend. I will."

There was a shout from the mountainside. Shen and Leo looked up to see one of Hei Xin's men had found them. A mass of shadows and silhouettes soon materialized and were quickly closing the distance between them and the fleeing gang. "We have to go!" Shen warned, holding Jai close to his chest.

Leo turned his head to the panther, glancing down at Jai in his arms before looking again at Ling. The snow leopard rose a paw up and heavily laid it on Leo's shoulder. "Go." His voice was all but a whisper. Leo shook his head again. "Go! I will hold them off!" Ling now snarled as he shoved Leo away, rolling onto his front and getting to one knee, grunting painfully. "I can give you the chance to escape, just go!" The snow leopard reached out and grabbed his sword, grasping it tightly in his paw.

The traitors were closer now, their eyes shimmering in the darkness.

Leo got to his feet and backed away from Ling. His red orbs looking up at the animals running straight for them and then to Ling. There was a tint of sadness and failure in their gaze. "Go!" Ling growled. "Go!" The wolf nodded in compliance and reluctantly turned away; looking at Shen the two males bolted across the snow and left the wounded Ling in their wake.

The snow leopard got to his feet with the help of his sword, his ears flicked at the sound of the assailants draw near. The feline sighed through his nose and closed his eyes. He took a long breath in and steeled his heart. He slowly reached to his belt and drew out a second, smaller blade from a scabbard. He held both blades in his paws and took the moment to glance skywards to the stars and the moon. His emerald eyes now held softness in their orbs as he whispered into the open night air. "Forgive me, son. I failed to keep my promise."

Ling's head fell and his eyes snapped open, set ablaze with the last remnants of fighting that burned like a roaring fire inside. The closest attacker was on him. Ling snarled and turned to face his opponent head on. After a few swift moves the enemy went down but the swarm had reached him. Ling leapt into the heart of it all and swung for any creature that came close enough for him. One by one the surrounding adversaries dropped to the snow, dead. Others had managed to land just the tips of their blades into Ling's body. The snow leopard roared in pain but it only fuelled his lust to kill as many of them as he could and buy Leo time.

Fatigue was soon creeping over the feline; he could feel the energy draining from his muscles along with the blood dripping from his wound. Ling sank to a knee, sloppily dragging his blades across the snow. The surrounding traitors laughed evilly at the sight of Ling and moved in for the final blow.

"Don't touch him!" Hei Xin's voice screeched. The group surrounding Ling parted as the great black eagle swooped in and landed gracefully, the snow crunched underneath his great build. The circle closed again as Hei Xin moved into the middle. Ling pursed his lips and looked up to the avian with disgusted eyes but slightly smiled: Hei looked worse than when he left for the Thread of Rope. His feathers were ruffled an uneven, blood matted down most of them where recent battle wounds presented themselves, most of them were on his underbelly. The one bite mark on Hei Xin's shoulder made the dying feline smirk all the more.

Ling glanced up and his smile vanished as he met Hei Xin's blood red eyes.

The captain stared down on him with deathly, knife-like orbs. "Where is Jai?" He bitterly asked.

Ling held his muzzle shut.

The eagle was in no mood for playing games. He outstretched his wing and beat Ling across the face. Blood flew from the feline's muzzle and onto the snow as his head cracked to the side. "Where is Jai!" He hissed.

Ling fiddled with the liquid in his mouth and spat more blood to the floor before slowly turning his head back to Hei Xin. He was met with one of Hei Xin's razor-sharp claws clasped around his neck. The feline dropped his blades and tied to pry the avian's hold from his throat. The eagle's beak twisted into a snarl, and he lifted Ling into the air; the snow leopard's body dangling by his only his neck. "I am the Commander now! You will do as I say. I'll ask one more time." Hei shouted. "Where! Is! Jai!"

Ling was still; he did not choke, he did not struggle, writhe or try to escape. The snow leopard, instead, spat a mixture of saliva and blood down on Hei Xin's face. The surrounding men were astonished, a few gasped in surprise. Ling curled his lips into a smile and showed his bloody teeth as he laughed aloud. Hei Xin's followers thought the feline to be senile, but the laughter was suddenly hushed by the cracking sound of Ling's neck breaking under Hei Xin's grasp.

A terrible silence descended.

Hei Xin 'hmped' to himself and threw Ling's limp body into the snow at the feet of some of the followers. They stared down on the corpse before looking up to Hei Xin. "Find them!" He ordered powerfully. "Find them and kill them." The group instantly snapped to attention and bolted for the woods, following the trail of footprints leading up to the forest. Hei Xin stood where he was for a moment and glanced again down to Ling's body face down in the snow with unsympathetic eyes. He snarled to himself and spread his great black wings, leaping into the sky and heading back to the camp, saying the same thought aloud to himself all the while.

"You can't hide forever, Leo. I'll find you. _I'll find you_."


	14. Precarious Liaisons

Is Love Safe?

Chapter Fourteen- Precarious Liaisons

Chen, Fu, Hao, Ming, Jai, Hei Xin, Ling, Leo and Shen (C) mine.

* * *

Leo's howl pierced into the night air. It was long and hollow, echoing from the snowy peaks of the mountains that were the Dragon's Pass. With the flow of the cold winds that danced gracefully the howl followed in its trail from the high altitude, snaking down through the streets of the Xi'an village that sat just south of the mountainous plane. In the surrounding forest wall trees sat idle as the howl crept its way deep into the belly of the woods. The leaves on the trees shook with fright at the horrific call rippled its way deeper and deeper eventually reaching the small cabin where Fu, Hao, Ming and the rest of the kung fu warriors took up residence.

Sweeping Tigress off her feet and carrying her in his arms bridal style, the Dragon Warrior and the kung fu master smiled at each other before Tigress took Po into another passionate kiss. Walking into the only room available, the panda closed the door behind them with his foot.

The main room was in an occupation of astonished silence. Everyone's mouths agape. It was all so sudden and unexpected.

Ming, having fully understood what occurred through her heightened sense of hearing, giggled. "Sounds like somebody is in for a lucky night."

A second later, everyone pulled down on their ears and groaned as Leo's howl punctured the entire cabin. Shifu's eyes broadened and darted at the others. Tai Lung's fur visibly bristled in the low lighting and his tail inadvertently stood on end. His head banged on the table and rubbed along the wooden surface. Ming grunted and fell off her chair, dropping to the floor as she arched her back and gritted her teeth. In the bedroom nearby, little Shen had woken and was crying for his mother and father. Fu pushed her seat away and slammed into the nearest wall, ears ringing with the echoing of the tremendous howl. Hao wriggled on the floor like a fish on land, grasping his pointy ears. The four members of the Furious Five clawed at their ears, trying to prevent the cry from tearing away at their ear drums.

The dancing flames of the candles vanished in a chorus of hisses.

Silence.

Little Shen's crying was the only sound that now filled the cabin.

Every room was in the building was sent into darkness. The only light that illuminated the cabin in a half bluish haze was the bright rays of moonlight filtering through the shades of the front windows. Long shadows of every resident stretched across the floor and up the walls.

Everyone released their ears.

Tai Lung, Fu and Hao's eyes dilated instantly, catching off the shiny moonlight rays. All about them was sent into a glittering green aura, through their eyes every little bit of detail stood out thrice to what they could see with the candles lit. For the rest of the gang they had to wait for their eyes were not as gifted.

Tai Lung saw his wife on the floor and helped her back into her chair before dashing off into the bedroom where Little Shen still cried. The wails were soon silenced by Tai Lung's voice coaxing the young cub. He soon reappeared into the room. "He's okay. I've put him back to sleep."

There was a sound of shuffling and the door to the training dojo swung open. Po and Tigress burst into the room. The panda's waist coat was missing and his fur was a mess. Tigress was no different, the two top buttons of her vest undone. The kung fu feline's eyes were as bright and wide as Tai Lung's, almost giving off their own light. Po looked scarce, green orbs shimmering in the dark. He rose his paws up. "Okay..._Please_ tell me I'm not the only one who just heard that!"

Master Shifu's silhouette worked its way close enough to the panda for Po's eyes to change and take in the faint detail's of contemplative worry showing on the Grand Master's muzzle. "You're not, Po. We all heard it."

"I think the better question," Crane spoke in. "...is what made that sound."

Tai Lung's physique moved in the shadows, the creaking of the floorboards beneath his feet. "Crane's right. I've spent my fair share of travel and I've never heard that sound before." His voice was stressed. The opening of draws and cupboard doors filled the blackened cabin. There was a pause before he said. "It sounded like...like..." The clouded leopard couldn't find the words to end the sentence.

"...a wolf." Ming's voice finished, her body enshrouded in the darkness. But it was not the loss of light that drew everyone's attention to the blind feline; the softness of Ming's tone had vaporized, replaced by a shaking fear of frail whispers. Because of becoming blind in her life, Ming had come to learn- even though she was still new to it all- to use her sense of hearing as it heightened through time. But she did not need to rely on her ears to translate what animal had caused that vicious cry. It was memory that reminded her. "And there's only one wolf that I know of that could have made that sound, only one type."

"Feral." Po and Shifu whispered.

Ming bobbed her head in the shadows. "Yes. I remember hearing it one night, there was a loud roar followed by a long howl. I could only guess from memory that the first was that of a feline." Po and Tigress met gazes. Shifu's ears flattened a little, the rest of the Furious Five all gained their attention to the black floor. They dared not to look up. Ming could not see their reactions but the sound of silence in reply told her that they knew something about what it was she was telling. "The other," She went on. "...was much like a wolf." There was a pause, she decided to ease the tension that was mounting on the kung fu warriors' shoulders. "I don't care for who or what made those sounds, but all I will say is that those people were real. That howl sounded very familiar."

There was a quiet hiss and the room was brought back into a dim light. Tai Lung had found and lit a match, holding the small light in his claws. He cupped the flame and moved it the candles on the table. Once they were alight again, Tai Lung moved away bring back the light into the room.

"How cant that be?" Tigress eventually spoke up. "The only feral person, next Po, who we knew was Chen Leigh."

"But he was killed long ago." Viper added. She gave a small side glance at Po to confirm. "Right?"

"Right." The panda said with a little more glum that he wanted. He thought of it best, as did Shifu and the others, to leave Shen out of this conversation at hand. But one thought, one little thing could not escape the panda's mind. Po's black brows gradually furrowed and dipped. "But..." He hissed with a sigh, pinching the bridge of his nose. "...It-it's weird."

Tai Lung had lit another candle, bringing the room further back into light. Monkey asked. "What's weird?"

"I-I dunno." Po replied. "It's almost like I could understand the howl. Like...like I could hear words instead of a cry. Like there was more of a message in it than just noise." Everyone dropped an eyebrow and stared at the panda like had just spoken another language. Po rose up his paws again in defence. "Hey, I'm just sayin' what I heard."

"But how can that be?" Mantis piped in, speaking his mind aloud as he glared down on the table with quizzical eyes. The insect broke from his stare- though only for a few seconds- glancing up and over to Shifu who seemed to have left his physical body and had again gone in on himself, into the standing-meditative state that he would usually fade into; just like back at the Jade Palace, in the kitchen two days ago. There was no point in asking him, anything. Mantis twitched an antenna bowed his head and went back to staring at the table.

Tai Lung had lit the last candle. He whipped the matchstick, dousing the flame with a 'hmm' to himself. "Y'know, I think I might have an idea as what Po is talking about. It's an old legend though." The snow leopard pointed the dead match at Shifu. "One that Shifu might know. It's almost like a legend, a myth. One from the Thousand Scrolls." Tai Lung then looked at Tigress, prodding the match on her direction with a scrutinizing gaze. "I believe you may have also come across it in your studies."

Tigress dropped her eyebrows in confusion, wondering where it was the ex-criminal was going. "Sure, I've been looking at the Thousand Scrolls." She acknowledged with caution. "But there's a problem, maybe two. One: they're called the _One Thousand_ Scrolls of Kung Fu for a reason. And two: how do you know if any of them even have anything to do with what Po is saying or what we all just heard?"

Everyone looked to the snow leopard, all of them noticed a glitter of pride lit up in Tai Lung's powerful sun-like orbs. A cocky smile snaked its way onto his lips. Tigress felt herself thinking back to the Thread of Rope where she fought Tai Lung with the rest Furious Five. It was just when she and her friends believed the snow leopard to have been defeated that he shockingly managed to jump in on them- quite literally- and smirk, just like he was now, before striking each of them down with nerve attacks.

All residents- even Shifu, who had seemed to come back to the physical world- took a seat around the table again and watched as the feline started to pace around the room. Tai Lung rose up a claw and laughed. "Ah, ha-ha. But this is where the master, me, comes in."

Ming rolled her blank eyes.

* * *

Leo ran, he ran and ran faster and harder than his body had ever known. Pushed with determination and fuelled by loss and anger his body sprang forward through the snow, weaving around every tree that stood erect in his path. If he had the time to stop Leo would have gladly turned to sprint back, wanting to return to the camp site to find everything just as it were. To know that Jai's life was not in immediate danger, threatened by mutiny and betrayal. To run back and find Ling sitting just outside his tent, brandishing his sword with a rough stone he had plucked out of the ground and soaked in melted snow.

Not anymore. The only thing that would be waiting back there for Leo would be Ling's broken and bloodied corpse, an army and Hei Xin's limitless wrath.

Leo had seen the moment when Ling's life was taken, thrown aside like a piece of trash. It made Leo shiver with hatred and fury, as much as it tore at him with pain. The wolf shook his head, this was not the time for grieving. No matter how tight it clutched at Ling's heart, still seeing the snow leopard's body lying in the cold snow with the fallen eagle's claw sticking out from his chest, blood dripping from the wounds and staining the virgin ground, Leo would not be blinded and stupid enough to turn back now.

Leo's mask stared up through the trees. A trembling sound rung in his sensitive grey ear. Ashy clouds had began to grow across the twilight sky, covering the stars behind a wave of thick black clouds. Things were about to get worse.

And they did.

Before too long a blizzard hits the forest. Common things as they were in the high regions of the mountains Leo was in no mood to battle the elements of the Earth. He and Shen had been forced to slow their escaping flee to a berating walk in knee high snow. Leo snarled a little, both from the way that luck and fate were turning against him in favour and the bitter sharpness of the ice shards that cut at his face. The grey lupine cursed under his breath, the words coming out in a cloud of vapour, curling and twisting in the frigid wings before being snatched away into nothingness. Leo drew his ears back and stomped onwards.

At the wolf's forefront Leo watched with following eyes as he glared lightly at Shen's back. It was not the feline he was directing his anger towards, it was just the expression his mask had seemed to have frozen in. Leo noticed the panther shivering; only covered by a light brown top and his own trousers. Sure, Leo only had trousers on himself and no top but the amount of body heat that emitted from inside the wolf, in addition to his long furry coat, there was little coldness he could feel.

Shen, however, was not as fortunate as Leo. The feline was not bred for harsh winter conditions. With only his small coat of fur, trousers and tattered vest Shen was shivering something bad. Leo strode forward and laid a weighty paw on Shen's shoulder. The feline halted and looked to Ling with squinting eyes in the rushing winds, his lips were turning blue. "W-We..we h-have to find s-shelter!" He shouted in stutters.

Leo nodded and looked ahead through the blizzard, seeing the ghostly outline of the mountain side. His ears flicked forward with notice. "Hurry! There's a cave up ahead. We need to get you out of the snow."

Shen growled slightly, he motioned down to Jai still bundled in the layers of cloak. "Don't...y-you mean her!"

Leo stopped and turned to Shen, his eyes stabbed like daggers. "Don't push me, boy. I'm in no mood to play games right now. I may like you, that doesn't mean I have to keep you alive." The wolf's mask softened as he glanced down at Jai and then back up to Shen, his bloody orbs glowering fiercely. "Lucky for you, Jai has means to want you alive." The wolf trudged onwards. "Follow me."

Shen hesitated his steps, doing nothing but lightly glare at Leo's back. With a quiet inwards snarl the panther followed on.

Deeper they went into the woods and storm, further through the trees Leo and Shen found themselves drawing closer and closer to the mountain. Leo stopped for a moment, his eyes scanning the mist and falling snow around him. A sigh of relief came through his nose. The cave was in sight. Both men bolted into the grotto. Once inside Shen collapsed the from exhaustion of the storm and having run for so long with Jai in his arms. Leo hunched forward as he walked in deeper to the cave, stopping to shake the snow doused over his being with a grunt. Free of the white covering on his fur, Leo looked around the cave with a temporary gaze.

As for Shen, the panther laid Jai aside and sat back on his behind as he took in a few deep breaths. His yellow eyes were bloodshot and tired, but as he examined the asylum of which they rested in a familiar shine glimmered in those orbs. "I know this place!" He gasped.

Leo faced him over his shoulder. "You should. This is the place you used to come when on your travels after the rampage at the Valley of Peace with Tai Lung. Or, the more recent memory you should have of this place is.."

"...when I was leading Shifu, Po and the Furious Five to find the White Rose. We were caught in a blizzard just like this one." He laughed. "This is the exact same cave from over a year ago. No wonder it all looks so familiar." It was true. It was the very same cave from over a year ago, the ceiling was still low as ever- he could see the spot where he accidentally bumped his head. The little throbbing on the side of his head was evidence of that. Even where the panther now laid was the same place he had slept in at that time.

Leo gave a ghost of a grin. He fully turned and kneeled by Jai, inspecting her for any signs that she had hypothermia. "How is she?" Shen asked.

"She's just sleeping. The adrenaline of the shot must have sent her into a type of re-healing sleep. She'll be awake in an hour or two." The wolf glanced at Shen, the panther had crossed his arms over his chest and hunched forward against the wall, pulling his knees in on himself. Leo pulled a cheek muscle and kissed his teeth. Switching eyes between Shen and Jai, the great lupine pulled the top cloak off of Jai's body. She only groaned slightly in protest but did not wake.

The wolf crawled towards Shen and draped the cloak over the feline's body. "Here, we won't be able to light a fire encase Hei's men find us." He glared at the mouth of the cave. "Though I believe it to be very unlikely."

Shen welcomed the covering. "T-thanks." He said.

"No problem." Leo smiled lightly, turning back to him.

"W-what about y-you?"

"Ahh, don't mind me, boy." Leo waved a paw dismissively. "I'm used to this weather. It's a natural thing for me, with all this fur on. After all I've been through this blizzard is like being tickled with feathers." The wolf stood up and craned his back as he walked over to the cave entrance, trailing a large paw over the ceiling as if stroking the rocky elements. He stopped by the curve of the cave's mouth and stared out into the blizzard. "Reminds me of my earlier years." He said aloud, almost as if he were lost in a trance and reliving old memories. The large wolf's lips were straight and his red eyes bore deep into the storm.

Shen innocently inquisitively titled his head to the side, staring at Leo before he rocked onto his feet. He stood up but did not halt in time till he flinched as his head connected heavily with the ceiling. _Clonk._ The panther covered his sore head and swore in murmurs. "Augh! Dammit! Dammit!" He growled, rubbing the throbbing part of his skull. With more caution Shen ducked his head and moved slowly to join Leo's side near the opening of the asylum. He stopped at the lupine's side and looked up at Leo's mask. The wolf's white and grey mask fur rippled in the howling winds yet, like a statue, Leo did not move nor even flinch.

Leo had seen this look before. It was when he had secretly watched Shifu talk about the past: about his mother and father, the times at the Jade Palace. He could remember seeing the pained look in the aged red panda's sapphire eyes. Shen felt his chest swell, he couldn't hold back the question he needed to ask so dearly. "Leo..." The wolf did not move. Shen tried again, firmer. "Leo!"

The wolf blinked and slowly turned to Shen, his ruby orbs indicating for the feline to continue. "What happened to my sister? What happened to her?"

Leo looked away and laced his paws masterfully behind his back, straightening his posture as he drew in a deep breath. "I'm sure Jai would rather be telling you this herself, but I know of her past just as well as I know yours."

Shen glared at the wolf with a sceptical eye and a hiked eyebrow. "How?" He slowly questioned.

"Because, like everyone and everything in the universe I have a past. A history, a story to tell that connects with Jai's- not to mention Hei Xin's as well." Shen steeled his heart and pinched the parts of his cloak together to shield his body, the ends bellowing behind him, as the winds brought up a sharp gust. The feline braced himself for what was to come next. Leo gave a sly smirk and chuckled. "Have you ever been feral?"


	15. Purest of Bloods

Is Love Safe?

Chapter Fifteen- Purest of Bloods

Jai, Shen, Leo, Husto (C) mine

* * *

"Feral. Such a thing of wonder, it is." Leo's voice dreamingly trailed out into the ravaging storm endearing outside the hollow cave mouth where the great ashen wolf and Shen stood. The panther's mind was drawn to nothing but Leo's words. It seemed too valuable, too important to miss. That and he just had nothing to do. "To revert back on our animalistic nature, completely, to submit to its raw power and energy and let ourselves be taken in its will like slaves. Oh, man. The rush of adrenaline in your veins, the beating of your heart- racing faster and drumming harder- so powerful you would have to collapse from the dash." The lupine paused and sighed delightedly. "All your senses, heightened to their maximum potential." Leo faced Shen, who starred with unyielding eyes. The wolf gave a satisfying grin, almost as if he were enjoying every word like a taste of pure ecstasy. He rose up a bulky finger, a few inches from Shen's nose. "But above anything else, it's the unbearable desire to live like a true predator- if you were carnivorous that is- other creatures would just divulge in unbelievable harnessing in their features. Strength, increased tenfold. Hearing, so well in tune you could hear for miles even in the nosiest of conditions. Speed, quicker. Reflexes, faster. Every single thing about a feral creature's body and mind would surpass that of a normal animal."

Leo paused. He waited for the conversation to settle a little, turning his gaze back out into the blizzard. "I ask again, I'm not sure if you have experienced what it means to be feral?" Leo asked, casting a long side glance in Shen's direction. The feline looked down to the smoothened stone floor and was silent as he shook his head. He then reverted back to staring at Leo. "I'm not surprised." The wolf said. "But I am interested. Because this is one story- my story- that will make you decide whether or not you believe you are ready for such power."

Shen nodded and took a tighter hold of the cloak draped over his shoulders.

"I'll start off with the bases." Leo said in his low, calm like manner. "I was never like who I was now."

"You weren't?" Shen asked, hiking an eyebrow.

Now it was Leo's turn to shake his head. "No." Then the smile on his muzzle grew. "I was better."

_I was never part of your kind of civilisation at birth. I was born of a pack of feral wolves. I was, what we called, a Pure One. I believe you people called us another name, but it does not matter. All my life I was trained, loved and protected as one of the pack._

The air on the rock face was cold, a natural thing for the mountains of China. Night was beginning to fall around the erect precipice. All around the sky was draining of its colour, the air growing pale as the shrinking circle of the sun finally disappeared. The white face of the mountain top still glowed bright, matching the shine of the thousand of stars that morphed into the purple-tinted sky.

The silence of the night was never left to its serenity, as an echo of laughter, yelps and coos with playful growls rung off the rocky face. Two little black figures rolled in the soft snow of the mountain. They charged at each other and tumbled over in the white powder, covering their shimmering dark coat with white speckles. Leo was jumped into the air and pounced down on the other creature with a squeaky battle cry. The young wolf pushed his enemy into the ground, paws heavily holding down the adversary. Leo raised his head and smirked triumphantly. "You lose again, Husto."

The pinned down animal whined and growled at the same time. "No fair! You cheated!"

Leo scoffed. "You're just saying that because I beat you."The wolf cub removed himself from Husto. "But it's a fair game. You had beaten me and I had beaten you."

Husto rolled onto his side and looked up to Leo in gratitude. "Yeah..." He rolled on his back from side to side in the snow. "Maybe one day I'll win twice in a row." He said in a day dream faze.

Leo padded over to Husto and nudged the wolf cub onto his side and then up onto his feet with his muzzle. "Maybe little brother. It will be quite a fight." Husto got to his feet and stood next to Leo on all fours. "But for now, let's call it even." Leo pushed up onto his hind legs and held out a paw. Husto waited no time in standing up like his brother and taking Leo's paw, shaking it in a firm grasp.

"Deal." Husto agreed with a smile.

In the moment of the handshake, Leo allowed his eyes to look over his brother. The cub was younger and smaller than Leo. His fur was an iridescent black, hiding the small build of naturally bred muscles: just like their father. A mark of silver ran up from his hind legs, along the base of his spine and encircled around his shoulder; a trait from the mother's side. The tips of his ears, though cute to look at, were shaded in a light ashen colour. But the most abnormal and also the most characteristic thing about Husto were his eyes; a pair of wide, sharp, oceanic-blue orbs that glowed as bright as the moon, with a little sliver of green in the right iris.

"You get better every day, Husto." Leo complemented with a grin. Then, the smile transformed into a toothy coy grin. The black wolf saw something glint in his brother's eyes, hiding behind the white mask covering his face. In the split time frame of a second Leo placed a crushing grip on Husto's paw, spun around pulled his little brother over his shoulder. The younger cub was dazed for a few seconds before realising the cold touch of the ground on his back and thumping sensation in the back of his head. He gazed up into the sky as Leo's mask came looming over. "But you still have a long way to go before you defeat me, little brother."

In that instant Husto grinned and pulled on his brother's paw towards him. The two wolves went at each other again in their playful fight.

_Husto and I were the closest of brothers and friends. We were destined to be the rulers of our pack, or at least I was. To be alpha male was not something of choice it was a birthright- a calling. Our father was the best of the pack, and our mother was ever so beautiful. Both were already feral- always feral. It's a natural thing for Pure Ones. They were both very protective of us. But we were young- Husto and I- we could not defend ourselves. _

_The thing about Pure Ones, there are always other packs, other groups. Being feral, like I said, the predatory nature can overcome you. Some packs can be friendly to each other. Others can be ruthless and merciless._

_On that very same night, everything that we knew and loved was gone._

As Leo and Husto continued their little battle over each other, Leo paused and lifted his head. His ears twitched. Someone was coming. Husto saw his brother's face and stopped to listen as well. There was an increasing sound of snow crunching and heavy breathing. Both cubs got onto their feet and stared through the trees. A shadow, no, two were running straight for them. Leo stepped a little ahead of his little brother and sniffed the air.

It was a familiar scent.

The two figures took their shape, two large wolves sprinting in Leo and Husto's direction. It was their mother and father. At first Leo smiled at the welcoming of his parents, but when he looked closer there was something about their complexity that made a cold icy shiver run down both of the cubs' spines.

Now under the moonlight Leo saw his mother taking the lead, his father trailing behind. Leo gasped, his brother craning his neck to see what it was that the grey wolf had lost his breath for. Husto soon saw the same as Leo, at that instant he felt like someone had just kicked him in the stomach. Their mother's ashen coat was soaked with blood; one of her ears had been torn off. All her beauty had been lost.

Husto and Leo's father was worse. His side was so badly torn, bitten and scratched, dripping with blood mixed from his dark coat. Fresh wounds crossed his snarling muzzle.

"Mama! Baba!" Leo cried at the sight of his parents.

Both the cubs shrunk into the snow and pinned their ears back as the adults were upon them. The couple slid to a halt in the snow in front of their cubs. The father faced the direction which they had just come. "They can't be far behind." He growled.

Leo and Husto looked at each other with confusion and curiosity.

"We have to get them to safety." The she-wolf snarled as she stood over Husto and Leo, looking in the same direction. "We can't let them hurt the cubs." Both Leo and Husto sank deeper into the snow, fear welling in their eyes.

The father faced his mate and lowered his ears a little as he glanced at his two sons. Both Leo and Husto stared back at their father. All their lives they had not once seen fear or terror in their father's eyes. He was always strong, always powerful and dominant. But that all seemed to have vanished in that one meeting of the eyes. The father composed himself and looked back up to the female. "Can you carry them both?" He asked.

His mate nodded. The family then froze as a howl struck the silence of the night air. It was not one Leo or Husto recognised. Both their mother and father snarled threateningly at the call, looking over from the way that had just run from once more.

The large black wolf faced his mate again. "Take them, then." He growled. "I will follow you; if any of them manage to catch up I'll hold them off. But no matter what happens, do not stop." He stepped towards the female. "You hear me! You do not stop until our cubs are safe!"

The female bobbed her head. There was a look of fear in her eyes. Though Leo and Husto could not see their mother's face but her underbelly the female rose to her hind legs and stepped towards the black wolf. He did the same, standing taller than her by a head height. Without warning she wrapped her arms around his broad shoulders and took him in the most long-lasting, most passionate kiss ever. Husto and Leo were now even more confused by their parent's behaviour. The couple separated. "I love you." She whispered.

"I love you too." He murmured back. His face then hardened. "Now go! Go!"

Both parents dropped back down to all fours. The she-wolf moved and turned to Husto and Leo. "Be still now, little ones." She cooed. Opening her large muzzle, the mother reached down and grabbed both of her sons. Though they were quite heavy, the female took hold of them by the loose folds of fur around their necks. The pups instantly went limp, as if it were a reflex. They were suddenly easy to carry.

The instant their feet left the ground, hanging from their mother's jaw, the female turned and bolted through the trees and down the mountain side. The father was on her trail. Both wolves ran as fast their legs could carry them through the deep snow, ploughing over its surface as they swiftly moved down the side of the rocky edge. Husto and Leo swung in their mother's jaw, squinting their eyes at the rushing wind in their faces.

There was a sudden whine of pain from behind. The mother stopped short and turned her head to see her mate on the floor. Crawling next to him was another large wolf, its muzzle stained red with blood. Another one came from behind the trees, and another. They all turned and glared at the she-wolf and her cubs; all their eyes blood red, teeth snarling viciously.

Leo and Husto squealed with horror at the sight of the malicious creatures and their father lying still in the snow. The mother began to back away, snarling as best she could to warn the three feral wolves to stay back, her ears drawn far down on her head. The creatures were not affected by her warning, growling snarling and drooling even more as they slowly closed in on her and the cubs.

The mother and her cubs snapped their eyes above the three wolves to watch as the large black form of Leo and Husto's father pounced on the animals. A fierce scrap ensued, biting mauling, scratching, swiping, growling and yelping. Leo and Husto could not tear their eyes away from the fight. They watched their father battle with his all of his spirit. A short few seconds in the scrap gave him the chance to look at his family. "Run!" He bellowed. "Run! _Augh_!" One of the feral wolves had taken the opportunity when the male's guard was down to clamp its jaw on his upper arm. The other took hold of his leg in its mouth. "Run!" He shouted one last time before grasping at the wolf on his arm, tearing it away and throwing him into a nearby tree. The creature sprung back at him, snapping its jaw.

Husto and Leo's mother took her chance and obeyed her mate. Without another glance back she turned and ran, but was unaware of one of the feral wolves seeing her leave. The creature growled at her back. He turned his head and glared deeply at the fight between his brothers and the black lupine. The male was now on the floor, on his back as he reached up to snap and swipe at either of the feral animals as they reached down and bit into his skin. The lone feral wolf looked away and at the shrinking figure of the female. He curled his lips into a snarl, revealing the glistening white fangs dripping with saliva. His eyes had found their prey.

Faster and faster the she-wolf sprinted through the snow, daring not to turn back. The safety of her cubs was all that mattered. She was determined to put her own life above theirs. To protect them: even if it meant her own life had to be sacrificed.

There was a sound of twigs crunching behind her. Her one remaining ear flicked back and she looked, hoping to see her lover following. She spotted one of the feral wolves bolting after her; its blood red eyes boring into her. A burst of energy, fuelled by panic and alarm, gave the female lupine the power she needed to push on through the snow. She gave another glance back to see the creature falling behind. A small smile tugged at her lips but it was short lived. She was losing strength and life in her body. She could not outrun the adversary forever.

Her eyes darted from tree to tree, log to log for anything where she could hide her children. Something came into view. It was a wide fallen oak tree with a hole beneath heading into the ground; it was obscured by a log. She directed her sprint for the gap. Upon reaching the hole she noticed it was a good way back into the ground and it was certainly wide enough for two cubs, but the female realized immediately there would be no room for her. She dropped the cubs from her jaw and shoved them inside with her nose. "Hurry, get in. Get in." She trembled.

Leo turned to his mother and pawed her muzzle. "Mama, don't leave us." He whispered with tears.

The female dipped her head and kissed her son on the forehead. She did the same with Husto. "Be safe my little ones." She whispered back, her voice shaking slightly. She looked to Leo. "Look after your brother, Leo. Protect him."

The masked cub nodded his head. "I will Mama, just don't go. Don't go Mama."

She licked his nose. "Don't worry, Leo. You are brave and strong." There was the sound of snarling coming the cub's way. The mother raised her head and looked to see the feral wolf sniffing the ground, trying to find her, a good distance away. He had not seen her. She gave one last look at her cubs. "Stay still and quiet. Do not come out till you know it's safe. Protect each other." With her last words she left the opening. She ran a reasonable distance away from the hole and stood poised. But as she stood there something stirred in her that made her both angry and suddenly tempted her to rationalise her fear, not for herself but for her cubs. She shook her tail and closed her eyes. With half from terror and half from a desire to draw the creature from her cubs, the she-wolf snapped her eyes open to reveal them to be a burning bloody red colour. She arched her back, lifted her muzzle and howled.

_I still remember that call she made. I could remember hearing her cry for us. I knew I couldn't understand a word at the time but something told me that it was for Husto and me that she howled. Her last goodbye; I was sure of it. We did not hear the fight, we did not see it. Husto was riddled with pain of our mother leaving us. He tried to get out of the hole but I held him back. I wouldn't lose him too._

_We waited for I could guess was hours. When we came out of the hole we and immediately went into search for our mother...we found her. _

Leo and Husto trailed through the deep snow. It's freezing surface tickling their bellies. They had searched for little over an hour in the cold night and found now traces of their mother. Husto sniffed the floor and soon caught a scent; his tail went up and wagged repeatedly. "Mama!" He recognised the scent and spotted the familiar shape of a paw print in the snow. Leo was by his side. The cub's looked at each other and followed the trail of footprints. They found her.

The female was lying beneath a tree, snow dripping onto her bloodied grey coat. It sprinkled her with a pure white powder. Husto padded over to his mother and nuzzled her, whimpering softly as he touched her body with his paw. The she-wolf did not stir. Her body was cold and stiffening beneath her coat. "Mama? Mama, wake up." Husto got onto his hind legs and pawed at her body with both his forepaws. "Come on, Mama. Let's go." The female's body still did not wake. Husto was still, staring down on his mother's body. Tears began to well in his oceanic eyes. "M-Mama..."

Leo watched his brother from the sidelines. He allowed his head to sink for a minute, growling softly to himself and the creature that had done this. Finally gaining the power to pick his head up, Leo stood back on his hind paws and walked over to Husto. The older brother laid a small paw on Husto's shoulder. The young cub looked at him with teary orbs. "Why..." He growled helplessly. "...why won't she wake up?"

Leo swallowed the lump in his throat. "It's because, Husto, she can't. She's can't."

The younger cub's face fell. He shook his head. "No..." Leo said nothing. He looked away. "No. No! No!" Husto barked as he turned back to the corpse. "No! She has to wake up. She has to!" With his forepaws Husto began to rock his mother's body. "Wake up! Wake Up!" He kept on repeating as the tears finally fell like water falls down his face. "Wake up!" It was too much for Leo to bear, watching his brother act this way. With good intentions he wrapped his arms around Husto's torso and pulled the cub away from their mother. Husto cried in defiance, pleading to Leo to let him go. He wriggled, fought and cried for his mother. Leo didn't let go.

The ashen wolf turned away and clamped his eyes tightly shut, daring not to let the tears go from his eyes. But it couldn't be helped. He increased his hold as both brothers let out a cry of anguish into the starry night air.

_It's a natural thing for cubs at that age to believe someone they loved was asleep when they were really dead. Husto did eventually calm down. I released my grip and he fell to the floor as limp as a boned fish. I collapsed by his side, comforting him as much I did myself. We sat there for a while, starring on our mother's dead body._

_I can still see her, everyday, lying in the snow._

_Soon I managed to get Husto to his feet. We went on after our father next. Going back the way our mother had taken us. We soon found his body. Those bastard wolves had torn him to pieces. That time Husto said and did nothing, but I didn't need to guess what he was thinking and feeling. I guess it was a normal thing for spouses to feel the same thing every now and then._

_Then, like Pure Ones do, he closed his eyes. His fists were shaking. He then howled, longer and louder than I had ever known to do. I couldn't help but join in his suffering. I closed my eyes and poured out my anguish and pain. But something in that howl changed us. When Husto opened his eyes and looked at me I noticed that they were red, like mine our now. He said mine had done the same. _

_We were not sure what happened but I can only guess that from what took place that nigh; losing our parents, friends and family pack we had become feral ourselves. Oh, all that hatred, anger and power swelling inside our bodies like a storm. We briefly said our goodbyes and moved on with nothing but each other's company. _

_I kept my word, I looked after Husto as we both grew and aged. All across China and other neighbouring countries we travelled. Always keeping clear of other Pure Ones, we soon picked up other stranded cubs younger than ourselves: run-aways, stranded, forgotten, orphans. All kinds joined us, not just wolves: birds, felines, apes, boars. Our pack grew and grew; I became the leader, the alpha male. Husto was second next to me. _

_Heh-Heh. I remembered the day he fell in love. She was a beautiful wolf; those two fell for each other the moment they met each other gaze. Their love flourished as the years went on. She even had cubs with him. I was happy for them both. I, myself, was too preoccupied with other matters to care for love. I had a group to lead. But I begun to notice that Husto was starting to step up, he was showing features of an alpha male day by day._

_Eventually, I made a great decision._

Leo took his brother aside from the rest of the group, padding away from the camp where they had set up for the night. Husto's mate was busy tending to her cubs. The duo of brothers went far from the pack, trailing further into the wooded area that enshrouded them. Leo's lead took them to the precipice edge, just on the forest rim, standing tall over the mountain's edge. In the distance below a shimmer of glowing lights could be seen. A small village could be seen through the light clouds passing by.

The large grey wolf stopped and masterfully placed his hands behind his back. Husto halted in wake of him. "Nice night." Leo said. "Isn't it?"

Husto tipped his head to the side with curiosity. "Devine."

Leo smiled. "How long has it been, brother?" He asked. "How long since that night?"

Husto sighed and walked up to his Leo's side. "At least twenty years, Leo, a good time to have forgotten about it."

"Maybe so, Husto, but we cannot forget our family."

Husto looked away and flattened his ears. "I know. It just hurts to remember them." He sighed heavily. "I miss them, Leo."

The tall grey wolf finally faced his brother and placed a paw on his shoulders. "I know. I miss them too." His voice was sincere and comforting, calm like a flowing river. "But we cannot dwell on the past." He smiled brightly. "We have a future." He placed his other paw on Husto's shoulder. "_You_ have a future, brother."

Husto looked up into Leo's ruby red eyes. "What are you saying, Leo?"

Leo pulled away from his brother and moved so that his body was positioned dangerously on the edge of the cliff. Husto was cautious of Leo, his tail shook. Leo took up his famous position again of placing his hands behind his back. He stared down on the village with a distant gaze. "I have come to realize, brother, that you have proved the qualities of a leader. You have the courage and strength to lead the pack." Leo paused and drew in a deep breath. "I am leaving the group, Husto. I am giving you the title of alpha male."

Husto's red eyes broadened, he stepped back a bit. "What? Leo, y-you can't be serious. I-I can't lead the pack! That's always been your job!"

"And now it's yours!" Leo growled lightly, looking over his shoulder. "I am going to leave and explore on my own. And as my last order as alpha male I say that you _will_ take the position."

Husto turned his attention to the ground, unable to say a word. Leo noticed his brother's silence and turned to face him. The great wolf sighed through his mask and gazed over Husto with the love of a brother. Husto had grown well; he was not much different from Leo. Actually, he looked almost like a spitting image of their father. His black fur had grown long, the grey markings now all shabby-looking, running up his back, the tips of his ears faded grey. None it could hide the built muscles from years of training and hunting.

"Husto." Leo said softly. The wolf raised his head and looked at Leo with glowing eyes and fallen ears. "Don't think that I am leaving to separate our bond. We will always be brothers. That will never change. But my time has come to leave, and it's yours to take over." Leo moved towards his brother. "Husto, you have a family: a lovely she-wolf to call yours and cubs well on their way to follow in your footsteps. I am glad and proud for this. Mother and Father would be too. Of us both, for what we have been able to do. Next to you I have no successor. This job would have been yours soon or later. Well, I am giving it to you now."

Husto's ears rose a little.

"And I would like to know." Leo continued on. "That my last wish is that you'd take it, not because it's your calling but because I am asking it of you. As your brother, I would like you to take it."

Husto was silent for a minute, his thoughts running on how he could convince Leo to stay. Was it even possible to make him stay? No. No, this was his choice. With a stiff jaw and ears perched fully atop his head Husto nodded. "Alright. I'll take it." Leo sighed contentedly. Husto snapped up a claw. "But know this, big brother: I will stay close to you. I will lead the pack well and be near should you need me. And if you ever do," Husto smiled. "...don't be afraid to howl. And the pack will come running to your aid. You are the best leader that they have ever had."

Leo smirked with gratitude. But was taken by surprise when Husto took him into a brotherly hug and held his body close. Leo settled into it and held Husto just as tightly. His brother's voice whispered into his ear. "But you are the best brother _I_ could ever have." Leo tightened his hold but eventually built up the will power to pull away.

"I'll keep your word to it." Leo smirked as he backed up to the edge. "Be careful, Husto. Take care."

The black wolf bobbed his head. "You too, keep safe, Leo."

The wolf rose up his paws and shrugged his shoulders. "Hey, what are you going to do?" He winked at his brother before summoning up his bravery and taking a courageous back flip leap over the cliff edge, disappearing behind the rocky edge. Husto rushed forward and hunched over the mountain side just to see his brother's grey form move swiftly down the snow slope, skidding on his paws. Leo gave a whoop as he went further down the slope.

The black wolf laughed heartedly at the sight.

_That was the last I saw of Husto, that night. I slid down the mountain side and hid among the shadows once I reached the village walls. I had to blend in, so I managed to steal a pair of pants and a top without getting caught. I was subtle, that was, until I ran into the crowd._

Leo was not sitting hunched up against the curve of the cave interior walls. Across from him, Shen sat with his golden eyes set facing the grey wolf's mask. The burning orbs glowed in the darkness of the cave as Shen stared at Leo, holding the cloak loosely around his shoulders. He felt warmer than a few hours ago when Leo had started his story.

And what a story it was.

Even the story Shifu told of when Shen and Tai Lung lived up at the Jade Palace and in the Valley of Peace could almost not compare to what Leo had just spoke of. But the wolf was not finished, not yet.

"When I had collected the clothes and ran into the crowd I made the first mistake of drawing attention to myself." Leo said calmly as he laid his paw on his stomach.

Shen raised an eyebrow in question. "What happened?"

Leo chuckled. "I bumped into someone and made a complete mess of both myself and the person i crashed into."

"Who did you bump into?" Shen asked, leaning forward from the wall.

Leo opened his maw to answer, but his ear flicked to the side and he looked to find Jai slightly hunched, standing on her own two feet. Leo closed his muzzle. She had shed all the cloaks except for one wrapped around her shoulders. Shen followed his gaze. "He bumped into me." The lioness spoke with a grin that was equal to Leo's laughter. She took a spot between the two males and sat down, her arm still in its makeshift sling that Leo had made. "The old fool jumped me." She glared falsely at the wolf.

Leo held up his paws in defence, or was it a sign of guilt. "No comment."

Shen looked between Leo and Jai. Out of all that the feline had just been told, one question came to mind. Shen shuffled a little on his spot, both because his butt had gone numb from sitting on a hard surface for too long and that wanted to know how Leo would respond. "One thing still confuses me, Leo." The wolf lowered his paws back onto his stomach. Jai was looking at her brother with an inspecting stare. Leo's eyes motioned for Shen to continue. "A creature, a fully integrated feral creature's eyes turn red, right?" Leo bobbed his head. "Then how come when Po turned feral that his eyes stayed green. Why didn't they turn red like yours?"

Leo shrugged. "Quite simple, really. He never went full feral. He only went part of the way."

Shen thought of the answer and asked another question, somewhat satisfied but not completely. "You said that all creatures can go full feral. And those born as Pure Ones, like you, can stay feral for their entire life, right?" Leo nodded again. "Can you ever come out of being full feral?" Jai looked from Shen to Leo this time, a knowing smirk on her lips.

The wolf was still, the slow rising and falling of his chest told the lioness that he was contemplating his next choice of action or words. "Why don't I show you instead of tell you?" He eventually said with a simple smile. The wolf then closed his eyes. Shen shifted again on his spot. Jai smirked slyly at Shen who met her gaze before both of them glanced over to Leo. The wolf he took in a deep breath through his nose and sighed hollowly. When he opened his eyes Shen was shocked, astonished and felt like a little child all at once.

Leo's eyes were a sparkling oceanic-blue, with a splinter of green sliver in his left iris.


	16. Dangerous Pride

Is Love Safe?

Chapter Sixteen- Dangerous Pride

Chen, Shen, Leo, Jai, Hei Xin and Husto (c) Mine

* * *

Shen was utterly and truly stunned, his mouth hanging open in a surprised gape, continuously staring at, and into, Leo's eyes. Only a few seconds ago they were a pair glowing ruby red orbs filled with hatred and scorning, now, a couple of shimmering oceanic-blue eyes that reminded the panther of Shifu all too well, apart from the splinter of green in the left iris. How ironic. Leo's abnormal characteristic eyes had the same colour of his brother, Husto, but with the splinter of emerald in his left eye instead of the right. No wonder the two wolves were brothers.

Jai still sat idle between both males and chuckled at the sight of her brother's stoned face. To her it looked as if the feline's cheek muscles had frozen from the cold weather. Her giggles gradually turned into laughter. Leo was just as amused and joined in with her.

Shortly thereafter, during the duo's enjoyment laughter, Shen managed to move his slack jaw again and found his voice. "It...It's not possible." He murmured quietly.

Jai hushed her hilarity and looked to Shen with slight surprise. "Not possible? Shen," She gently ridiculed. "I thought Master Oogway taught you better than that." The panther looked to her, dropping an eyebrow. "Don't you remember, the old turtle's words: Nothing is impossible?" Jai said, questioningly.

Shen hesitated in his reply, not looking at Jai because it was out of confusion but more along the lines of scepticism. He was still open-minded about how much she knew about his life? Leo too, in time, dimmed his jolly chuckles and leaned forward off the curved stone wall. Shen faced the great wolf and met those striking blue eyes once more. "Don't act so surprised, Shen. We know all about your life. And there is a lot about me and Jai you do not know."

"Nor need to know." The lioness added coldly, her old dark self returning.

Shen cast his sister a hiked eyebrow in wonder, if only for a few seconds, what it was that she meant by that. But the feline knew it was not going to be easy to get Jai to talk about her past so willingly like Leo. Jai's heart had hardened over the years of her life that much Shen was certain of, but there was a breeching point. There always was a way in; all he had to do was find the one tiny chip in the stone wall constricting around her heart. Shen leaned back up against the wall and tightened his lips. "Alright, then." He said, turning to the wolf. "Tell me, Leo. If you, Hei Xin, Po and my father- also including Pure Ones- can go in and out of being feral then answer me this next question." Both men held a locked gaze. "Is it possible, for other creatures such as myself and Jai to do the same when we're not Pure Ones?"

The wolf's smile was bright and wild. "Of course. Any creature, any animal- even those not born as Pure Ones such as yourselves- can become feral." Leo hesitated and turned his muzzle away from Shen but did not break the stare down on the feline. He rose up a claw and pointed it directly to Shen's face. "You want to become feral, don't you?"

Jai looked to her brother with both surprise and concern. "You can't serious?" She snarled.

"And what are you going to do about it?" Shen growled; an innovative outburst of irritation in his voice. The panther locked his jaw and set his eyes burning. "It's my life and I'm going to do what I want with it!" The feline half scoffed, half snarled as he crawled to his feet and walked to the cave's mouth. He stopped just short of the wall of the storm. The winds howled and Shen's cloak flapped sharply. "I'm not going to be weak like our mother and father. They got themselves killed because of not being strong enough." Shen's voice shook a little but the venom in it stung at Jai's barricaded heart. The standing feline dipped his head and balled his paws into fists.

Leo's white mask eyebrows rose as he looked from Shen to Jai. The wolf drew his ears back slightly. Jai's face was flushed like a red rose, her lips curled up and teeth flashing in the darkness of the hollow cave. She stood up on one knee and pointed a threateningly claw at her brother. Leo had seen this kind of resentment in the lioness before and it was a very unfortunate ending for the poor soul who had drawn her into such rage. It amazed Leo she was able to hold it in this long without jumping on Shen.

"You take that back." Jai hissed spitefully. "You take that back! Now!" Her tail twitched in the darkness, Leo's azure eyes caught this too.

Shen sneered boorishly, unfazed by Jai's growling that bounced off the rocky walls of the asylum and echoed into the blizzard. "You're weak, just like them! Our mother was murdered by our father for being insolent and he, himself, was too pathetic; blinded by lust and greed he did not foresee that he walking right into his own grave." Shen half turned and stared right into Jai's blazing orbs, the ashy blizzard casting a dark and villainous glow about him He became a shadow in the cave's opening. His face was shrouded in the darkness, his yellow eyes being the only distinction about him. They held a twinkle of cunning and deception. Jai did not see this. "I can see now why they let you go: you're an embarrassment to our family name. It's a disgrace for you to have ever been born into the world." Jai growled a little louder "What little cause could you give our parents that they so wished for?"

Jai was on her feet and flying across the cavern in the within the space of two seconds. The roar that erupted from her throat bellowed greatly inside the cave, Shen was prepared for her to charge but was unwary of the force and brute strength behind the charge as she slammed her body into his. The feline was knocked off his feet and felt the air rush from his lungs. He became weightless as the slam carried both him and Jai out into the snow storm.

Leo blinked his eyes quickly and went back into full feral, his eye colour changing from blue to red instantaneously. The wolf rolled onto all fours and sprang out of the cave's mouth, galloping after his lover in fear of what she might do to Shen as much as it was for her own safety. If Leo had the right impression, then Shen was going to need the extra helping hand and protection from his sister. He had pushed Jai too far; this was something uncharacteristic to the wolf. Leo had to stop this before it ended. The wolf increased his speed and dashed over the snow surface in haste.

Jai and Shen locked bodies and rolled downhill of the mountainside through the blizzard, the winds howled as if encouraging the fight that suddenly broken out in the storm's presence. Every morsel of Jai's body screamed at her to strike at Shen mercilessly, she gave in. With a firm hold on her brother's tattered shirt Jai straddled Shen and hammered a tight fist into his cheek. She did not hesitate in backhanding him across the other side, then another delivering punch. Their tumble eventually ended with the duo lying in the deep snow, Jai on top. Shen's fur rippled in the high winds and his skin could feel the cold ice seeping through the cloak and his clothes. His cheeks stung bitterly where Jai had hit him.

Furiously the lioness released her other paw, holding him down with her body – his arms locked beneath her legs- as she raised her lips and snarled viciously. Without remorse Jai struck her brother in the face again before drawing down on his chest. The blow at his torso made Shen convulse violently, coughing up blood in the process. Wriggling and taking more of her blows, Shen managed to pull his arms free from Jai's legs. He directly went for her wrists, tightly holding them in his paws. The female struggled in his grip, but Shen was larger and more powerful than she was. The panther used the opportunity in her cease attack to roll them over in the snow so now he sat atop her.

Jai closed her eyes and arched her back, growling deeply as she snapped her head from side to side. "Jai! Jai!" Shen called to her, lowering his head down close to hers. But the female could not hear his voice calling her name in the winds. She could hear nothing but a ringing sensation in her ears. Her heart thumped portentously against her chest, daring to break free. Shen repeatedly called her name. "Jai! Jai, look at me! Look at me!" The feline craned her neck and screamed highly, but it intensified into a deadly roar. Shen's body froze; he had heard this call many times in the past. His mind trailed back to the day when he stood over the gorge, staring into his father's eyes and screaming ferociously to the heavens.

Jai's eyes blasted open. They were no longer blazing gold but a burning hot red colour like freshly spilt blood.

She had gone full feral.

Jai's glare penetrated Shen's body, reaching his soul and chilling it more than the blizzard that had engulfed them. She growled lowly. The corner of her lips pulled to reveal her perfect fangs in a scary looking grin. "I'm looking." She snarled angrily. Shen had been completely fazed by his sister's sudden transformation that he loosened the hold on her wrists. His strength had vanished like a puff of smoke. He had purposefully intentioned for Jai to get angry and charge him, but it was only to get her to tell her story. He never expected it to go this far. His arms went slack.

Jai felt the change in her brother's power and ripped one of her wrists free to bring it across Shen's face with her razor claws. They tore at the fur and skin.

Shen's head cracked sideways and he clutched his face, roaring in anguish. Jai brought her paw back and struck Shen across the other cheek with a fist, the strength following knocked the feline off Jai's body and face down into the snow. Shen covered half his face and left eye, which he felt beginning to swell and weep warm liquid through the gaps in his claws. The panther's heaved his chest and, still clutching his muzzle, Shen rolled over when he heard a violent grumble. He turned onto his back to find Jai hunched on all fours and fiercely look at him. Her back arched and claws unsheathed. Even in the terrorising winds her fur quivered.

Shen gasped and began to back away frightfully, fear tearing at his body. "Jai! Jai, stop! Stop! It's me!"

But the feline didn't seem to be listening to his pleas. "You think it's fun to lie, looking in my eyes? You think it's a joy to playing with my mind?" She hissed, padding tentatively closer to Shen as if stalking her prey. "You think it's fun to mess with my mind? Oh, brother, you have made such a grave mistake!"

Shen scurried across the floor. "J-Jai...s-stop, please! Stop!" Jai sunk deep into the snow, her shoulders tensed and her paws padded the ground. Shen's face went as pale as the storm. "Jai...?"

The feline pounced, her maw opened wide and teeth glaring, ready to sink into his flesh. Shen closed his uncovered eye and braced for the final blow. But the sound of a whelp caused the feline to look once more and spot Jai dancing, in a display of snaring teeth and snapping jaws, with Leo. The wolf had jumped in at the last second, intercepting the lioness just before she got to Shen.

Shen wanted to run, anywhere, to get away from the fight and his sister. But something willed the feline to stay where we was. Whether it was the brawl beforehand or the love for his sister Shen could not bring himself to get up and sprint as far as he could in the blizzard. It was then memories of listening to Shifu tell the story of Shen's mother and father when they fought each other in the Valley of Peace flashed before him. It was during that night, in the cave, the feline allowed his imagination to picture what the battle was like. No image he ever conjured could compare to the sight at hand. Shen felt a sudden revulsion grip his heart. He remembered how Chen had killed his lover by biting down on her throat and throwing her around like a rag doll. And then the image of Po doing the same thing to Chen a year ago, it horrified Shen all the more.

The panther would have jumped in to help his sister but even Shen knew that he would be killed in the middle of the onslaught. Watching helplessly he could only pray for Jai to come out of this alive.

The wolf and lioness tore at each other and their snarls echoed through the storm, answered only by the winter's bitter howling winds. They were a mass of grey and brown. Leo's size and strength was overpowering for Jai but the feline's flexible form weaving around his body was formidable for the great wolf.

But Leo proved his worth.

Not wanting to hurt Jai, the lupine managed to slip his body around to behind the feral feline. And, like he once did with his brother as a young cub, tearing him away from their dead mother's body, Leo wrapped his large arms around his lover's torso and pulled greatly. Jai writhed and reached over to claw at Leo's face but he was just out of her reach. The wolf stood up on his hind paws and lifted Jai off the ground. "Jai! That's enough!" He barked in her, tightening his grip. "Calm down! You're feral, you have to calm down!"

The feline's movements loosened up a bit. She pushed against Leo's arms with her paws but even in her feral state she was not match for his potency. "No! No!" She cried out into the winds. Leo didn't dare to let go. "No! No!" She continued to scream. It almost like she was a cub being forcefully separated from her parents. Shen felt as though he could cry. It tore at his soul to watch Jai this way.

Haring his sister cry Shen got to his feet, his stomach knotted. Releasing his face the feline ran infront of her. She was still struggling against Leo's embrace. "Jai, look at me!" He said, trying to get her attention. She writhed even more. "Jai!" The female's head snapped up and she stared into Shen's eyes through dripping tears. Jai gasped at the sight of her brother. Through the falling ice and snow flakes, thanks to her newly heightened senses, Jai looked at the fresh wound running along Shen's nose and up over his right eye, weeping blood. It was by luck she had just missed his eye itself.

Immediately, the hostile movements ceased and for a few minutes Jai went limp in Leo's arms. The wolf lowered her back down to the ground, kneeling with her but still not letting go. He couldn't bring himself to let go, the memory of Husto plaguing Leo's mind. Jai's head dipped again and she clamped her eyes shut. Leo rested his nose on the back of her neck fur and sighed.

With slow caution, Shen got to his knees and edged towards Jai. Leo lifted his head and saw the feline approaching. His eyes warned to stay away. But Shen had found a new determination and sympathy for the slunk feline in Leo's hug. He ignored the wolf. "Jai...?" He whispered just above the winds, loud enough for her to hear. Jai's ears flicked upwards at his voice and she raised her head gradually. Shen gave a weak smile and moved closer so that his own face was a few inches from her own. Jai had never looked to helpless and frail through his eyes. It was if the fight had gone out of her. Her lips quivered and the tears from her eyes stung like ice on her fur and skin. Those blood red orbs stared right at, not into, Shen: they spoke messages now words could ever converse.

Without so much as a warning Jai broke herself from Leo's loosened hold and threw herself on Shen, slinging her arms around his neck and burying her face into the crook of his neck. Leo moved to pull her away but was halted by Shen's paw snapping up as a way of saying for him to stay back. Leo pulled away and watched tentatively. He then heard it, the feline was sobbing heavily into Shen's fur. Shen could feel it through the cold, her warm salty tears running down his body. Instincts came naturally; the feline took Jai in his own arms and held her close to his body. She seemed so small and scared. No longer his big sister: but a little frightened kitten, afraid of the world. It melted Shen's heart.

But out of all that Shen came to realise, it was that he was officially hugging his sister.

"Shh, Shh." He cooed softly, stroking her head fur.

Jai tightened her lock and choked on some of her tears. Shen hugged her back.

"Shh, I'm here..."


	17. At the Beginning

Is Love Safe?

Chapter Seventeen- At the Beginning

Fu, Chen Hue Leigh, Keera, Husto, Leo, Shen and Jai (C) mine

* * *

It had been a few hours since the fight between Jai and Shen; the lioness becoming completely feral and her breakdown in Shen's arms. The Black Panther had managed to calm his sister down enough for both him and Leo to bring her back to the cave. Shen had comforted Jai whilst Leo went off to collect some wood for a fire. He finally assumed it was safe enough to light one, Hei Xin's men would never find them till the storm lifted.

Now with a gentle fire ablaze and crackling in a small pit, filing the inside of the cave with warmth, Leo sighed in relief as he leaned back against the curve of the wall. The wolf laid his paws on his stomach. Starring across from where the wolf sat and the flickering flames Leo's bloody eyes set on the two felines, particularly Jai. The fire seemed to reflect in Leo's orbs, as if he had captured the flames in a blink of his eye lids.

Leo had wished for Jai to sit by him, but the lioness had turned to her brother. Since her emotional outbreak Jai had not let go of Shen's body, crying her eyes out after holding them in for so long. Leo understood her pain well, but he had to be strong for both himself and his lover. A twang of jealousy tugged at the lupine's heart, starring at the way Jai laid herself down at Shen's side, her head resting in his lap as he stroked her fur tenderly.

And yet, the wolf could partially understand as to why Jai turned to Shen instead of him. For one thing he was her only living family by blood, the same for Shen- apart from his wife and child. For as long as he known the beautiful feline, Leo had been in love with the lioness. They had been through thick and thin, only ever had the lightest of arguments: just like every couple does. Leo knew for he had seen it happen with his brother Husto and mate during their travels and time together as a pack. But none of it came close to what happened tonight, having to throw himself at Jai in order to prevent her from tearing Shen apart or harming herself in the process. He never had to do that with Husto. The wolf sighed solemnly through his nose, authenticating that most of the building blocks of his relationship with Jai had broken. It was nothing serious, Leo was sure of it. Jai would come around, and they would eventually be together again. And maybe, just maybe, Leo hoped, they would not have to hide their love any longer.

It was in that one thought, that one glimmer of hope that made Leo hold back his jealousy for Shen and keep the fire burning in heart for the female feline ablaze. All the wolf had to do was just give Jai time.

Leo was patient, he could wait.

Shen's head was resting on the stone wall, his eyes closed. Jai was still, curled in on herself with one of the cloaks draped across her body: it appeared that she was sleeping. Leo kept a cloak by his side for future uses whilst the others were thrown into the fire to be used as fuel. Leo starred straight at the feline with unblinking eyes. Shen sighed and slowly tilted his head forward. His eyes opened and glowed as bright as the fire in the flickering shadows of the cave.

He gently glared right back into Leo's eyes. "I did not mean for things to that far." He said gravely.

Leo lifted one his paws in understanding. "You don't need to explain, Shen. I saw what you were trying to do. I knew that you did not wish, or plan, for things to escalate to such trouble."

The feline looked away guiltily; staring down on the female resting in his lap. "I only wished to understand her better." He gazed up to Leo, sparkling pools of tears in his eyes. "I just want my family back."

Leo nodded his head down to Jai. "She wants the same thing, y'know." Shen glanced down at his sister and then looked back up to Leo. "Out of all the things she's done, all the things she's got, they can never compare to the one thing she never had."

"A family..." Shen whispered.

Leo's ears twitched, the wolf shook his head. "No, she still has that. As long as you're alive, she has some remnants of a family left." The wolf eyes were sincere and heavy on Shen. "It's a family's love that she never got." Leo's ruby eyes laid on Jai again. "Of all the things precious in this world; jewels, rubies, silk and gold...love triumphs above all. It is the strongest bond that anyone can have. Nothing is more powerful, nor that deadly too."

Shen dropped his head and tentatively probed the new cut on his face, feeling it with his claws from across his nose to above his right eyebrow. His glassy eyes held a severe understanding, already knowing of the unlimited strength and bond that love held. It was like almost like the symbol of what darkness and light stood for: Yin and Yang. It made Shen think. It was love for their parents that made Jai charge him with anger and hatred- that could easily represent the dark side- but she could not bear to sit by and listen as he disgraced their family- that was the bright side. Everybody was made of both shadows and light, but no one could ever be so pure or too dark. These...differences would just sometimes tip one way than the other.

And right now, Shen couldn't tell which way Jai's scales were falling. A tear fell from the feline's eye, rolling down his furry cheek before dripping onto Jai's ear. She unconsciously flicked it off.

Leo spotted the glistening tear. The wolf inclined his head forward a little and tilted it to the side. "Things can never go back to the way they were, Shen." He said, as if reading the feline's mind. "You can't change the past, anymore than you can change the future."

"I don't want to change the past." The feline replied as he held back the waterworks. "I'm just afraid."

Leo lowered a white eyebrow. "Afraid?"

Shen slowly nodded. "Afraid...because I might lose her."

"...just like mother and father did?" Jai's voice whispered. Shen glanced at the lioness and removed his paw from her head. Jai sat herself upright. Her eyes were still red from being in the feral state, but they held a sight of pain and apprehension in their gaze. Jai sniffed and wiped her nose with her forearm, rubbing her glassy eyes with her paw.

"What are you talking about?" Shen asked, stunned by such words coming from his sister's lips.

Jai sniffed again and faced the ground. "I loved our parents, Shen. I loved them more than anything in the world. And I know that they loved me back." She shuffled and turned herself so that her back was facing both the males. "But sometimes if my love for them was strong enough."

_I was born many years before you, Shen. Things were so much simpler back then. Our mother and father had been married no longer than a year. I was conceived and born in the village of Xi'an. Our mother and father said it was the happiest day of their lives. They always wanted a cub and I had the honour of being their first._

The village of Xi'an sat in solace at the base of the Dragon's Pass. It was morning, a cold breeze fluttered through the vacant streets. The sun had not yet reached the pinnacle of the snowy mountains that were doused with a fine white powder of snow, colouring the sky in an amber red hue and bruising the variety of clouds with purple tints.

But the serenity of the small community was shattered by an ear-piercing scream of pain. A ray of sunshine broke through a crack in the spiked mountains and shone down upon a small house sat on the edge of the village's walls by the wheat fields. Inside the screaming wailed and roared in agony. Behind the concrete walls of the house, in the master bedroom, a lioness screeched out her lungs. Her fur was matted with sweat and her face a blushing red. Tears welled in her eyes. "Ahh!" She screamed. She slammed her head back and roared louder. She was giving birth. "Ahh!"

On one paw she had a female pig dabbing a cloth across the feline's brow- the midwife- and on the other hand was a hefty grey lupine with broad shoulders and striking blue eyes. It was Chen Hue Leigh, her husband. An elderly goat, the village's recommended doctor worked the main part of the procedure. The lioness gripped Chen's paw as he encouraged the feline onwards. "Come on Keera! Come on! Push!" The female growled and she grasped his paw in a constricting grip. Chen felt the blood rushing from his wrist and a pain so intense, from being gradually crushed, that he dropped to one knee and began suddenly regretting giving his wife something to hold that was part of his being.

The female pulled Chen close so their muzzles were mere inches apart. He could feel the heat and sweat coming of her face. "I'm going to kill you, Chen!" She snarled.

The wolf shrunk into his shoulders and lowered his ears. "What! Why?" He squeaked like a mouse.

"For putting me in this situation!" She growled in reply.

"Hey!" He pouted; ears upright. "You wanted this more than me! It was you who wanted to go through with this in the first place, Keera!"

Keera hissed for she knew her husband was right. Her face twisted monstrously and she threw back her head again as the cub in her abdomen was brought into the world. For another hour the residents of the house –not to mention half the village- endured the lioness' cries of pain. But soon the miracle happened. Another voice filled the house, a brand new tiny squeal of a cub whining. The entire valley went silent.

Chen and Keera gasped as they both looked at the end of the bed. The doctor gradually rose to his feet and turned to the midwife. The female pig took the tiny form and began the process of washing, cleaning and wrapping the cub in a blanket. With a wide smile she walked round the opposite of the bed from Chen and turned to them both. The husband and wife sighed with happiness. "Say hello to your new baby girl." The pig said as she held out the bundle of blanket to Keera.

The feline slowly took her cub with shaking arms and tucked the covering in the crook of her arm. The goat and pig beamed contently and leaved to give the family their quality time. Chen took a seat next to his exhausted wife. "She's beautiful." He whispered. And she was, only being a few minutes old the young cub wrapped up in the blanket held her paws close to her chest, her head slightly turned to the side, snuggling the softness of the blanket, mistaking it for her mother's womb. Her fur was a shimmering golden brown, her eyes clamped shut. She was too young to open them yet. But her parents would wait. "She's absolutely beautiful." Chen gazed. He then paused and looked to Keera. "Just like her mother." The lioness snapped her head to Chen. The wolf saw tears in her eyes. But these were not droplets of water from pain or grief, they were of happiness. Her smile was full of pride and joy, just like his. The couple shared a loving kiss and turned back to their daughter. "What should we call her?" He asked.

Keera blinked for a second and a look of panic came over her face. "I...I don't know."

"Well...how about..." Chen lowered his eyebrows and thought hard. "Kina?"

The cub stirred and groaned a little. Keera shook her head with a small grin. "I don't think she likes that?"

"Okay. What about Mei?" The cub groaned again. Chen's ears dropped. But then he gave a gaping smile and snapped his claws. "I've got it." Keera looked to her husband. "Jai...Jai Wu." The cub did not stir or whimper. She just lay still in the blanket.

Keera's smile broadened. "That's a wonderful name." She kissed her husband again and looked down to the cub with love and affection in her eyes. "Jai Wu."

_Only a few minutes old and I could, in some way, understand our parents' voices. They said that it was a sure sign I was destined for great things. Yeah, right! But still, I was treated with such love and care. They were very protective of me. Our father, when he was growing up, himself, was taught a little in martial arts. I'm not sure if it was kung fu or not but he could hold up a fight pretty well. As I grew he taught me what he knew. It was almost a natural talent for me. _

_And it was one day, that we heard the greatest news._

Chen stood poised on the golden wheat planes of one of the fields surrounding the village of Xi'an. A few farmers working on the crops a fine distance away. A wooden staff resting leisurely on the wolf's shoulder, his large arm draped across it and his sapphire eyes shimmering in the afternoon sunlight. A gentle wind brushed through the field and blew against his fur grey fur. He lifted up his other arm and motioned to his adversary with a sly grin and a flex of his claws.

A good space away from Chen, Jai gripped her own staff tightly in her hands. The feline was in her adolescent years: having grown to become a beautiful lioness like her mother- just as Chen said on the day of her birth. He fur had grown almost to its full length and was smoother than silk. Its colour matching the shade of her young eyes glowing full of life, tenderness, vigour and innocence. Her tail twitched a tad and she twirled the staff above her head, dropping into a stance and pointing one end towards her father. The wolf dipped his head and looked through his eyebrows challengingly. Jai met his gaze and sprinted across the field.

Chen was like a statue as he waited for his daughter to get within range.

Once close enough Jai switched movements and used her staff as a pole to jump off the floor and spin, bringing down the wooded weapon on her father's head. Chen sunk low and swiftly brought up his own staff to block the attack. Jai touched the floor once more and smirked past the staves to her father. The wolf mirrored her expression and winked. Like a well practised dance Jai and Chen moved around each, their wooden weapons clacking and clonking on each contact made. Flexible as snakes and fuelled with young energy Jai weaved in and around her father's body, always trying to find a breaking point in his defence but there was not one second that she made complete contact with his body.

Chen laughed and encouraged Jai to fight on, to push herself against his defences.

Father and daughter gave themselves a bit of distance in the field. Chen spun his staff and held it up against his back. Jai was heaving her chest out and sweating profoundly. "Good." Chen chuckled. "Very good!" He called out to his daughter. "Keeping close to your enemy whilst they try to strike you gives you the advantage to attack them upfront." Jai smirked a little and nodded. Chen snapped up a claw. "But you cannot rely on flexibility and subtlety all the time. You must learn to be strong, powerful and look your enemy in the eye when you overpower them. Never give in! Never allow...your...enemy...to..." Chen's speech drifted off into silence as his eyes spotted a figure watching him from the shadows by the entrance gate of the village. It wasn't a busy day for the market so population was of low standards. But something about the shadow watching Chen made the wolf's fur shudder and bristle. Jai came up to her father's side.

"What's wrong, Baba?" She asked, looking up at him

The wolf blinked and gazed down to his daughter. He planted his staff on the ground and moved his eyes back up to where the figure stood. They were no longer in sight. They had vanished. "I...I'm not sure." Chen managed to find his voice.

"...Okay. I see." The lioness said. She then side glanced up at her father with a look of knowing deception. "And I also see you've left your defence down." She smirked. Chen's eyes widened and he now truly realised how close Jai was to him and how vulnerable he was. Suddenly the wolf felt his feet swept from the ground and his body slamming into the ground. The wolf gasped as the air rushed from his lungs. He dropped his staff and opened his eyes to find Jai standing over him with a conquering smile on her face. Her staff was centimetres from his nose. "Never allow your enemy to beat you. Is that what you were going to say?"

Chen sighed and gave a light chuckle and cocked his head to the side. "No, actually, that's not what I was going to say."

Jai raised an eyebrow in question and a look of confusion came over her face. "It's not?"

Chen smiled greatly and shook his head. "No. It was don't forget that if you get too close to your father," He growled. "you'll get tickled to death."

Jai was deadpan. "What?"

In one swift movement Chen latched up a paw and swatted away Jai's staff from her grip, pulled her down to the ground by her arm and began an onslaught of prodding and tickling at her sides. Jai was powerless. She screamed and tried to swat away her father's paws but Chen was unyielding. "You think that you can get away with that little trick of yours? Huh? Huh?" He asked over her laughter.

"Baba! Baba..Stop!" She cried between giggles, holding her sides to protect them from Chen's paws.

"Never!" The wolf bellowed deeply.

Chen continued to attack his daughter with tickling her sides. Jai's screaming getting louder, tears running down her cheeks and her lungs crying for air to breathe. A shadow soon loomed over them. "Honestly, Chen. Let the poor girl go!" The wolf stopped his tickling of Jai and looked over his shoulder to see Keera towering above them both.

"Oh, Keera, she's fine." Chen smiled as he sat back on his knees. He looked down at Jai with a playful warning in his eye. "She's just need a lesson in thinking she can overpower her old man." Jai giggled in a child-like manner and wiped the tears from her eyes, still giggling a little. Chen chuckled as he looked up to find his wife silent and smiling intensely, more than usual. The wolf dropped an eyebrow and got up onto his feet, taking Keera's paw in his own. "Keera? Honey, what's wrong?"

Jai sat cross legged on the wheat field ground, staring up to her mother and father with worry. She heard the concern in Chen's voice. But Keera was still beaming merrily. There was something about her, a glow that radiated from the lioness' fur, making her almost shine with pride. She bit her lip and still the smile remained. "Nothing's wrong, Chen. I have good news...great news!"

Chen looked to his daughter before turning back to Keera. "What do you mean?" Chen asked, finding himself getting the contagious grin.

Keera took her husband's paw and brought it towards her body, resting it flatly across her abdomen. Chen glanced down to his wife's abdomen then up to her eyes, back down to the lioness' belly before, very slowly, looking right into the feline's eyes. His jaw went slack and his muzzle held agape.

"You're not!" He gasped.

Keera nodded. "I am!" She squealed happily.

Jai quickly got to her feet. "What? What's happening!" Neither of her parents replied. Keera was too busy with her plastered smile whilst Chen looked as if he had seen a ghost. Without warning, and giving no answer to Jai's question, the wolf tipped backwards and fell down to the floor in a collapsed heap.

He had fainted.

_It was the first time I had ever seen our father faint, and so easily. I later found out our mother was pregnant again, with you. I was ecstatic! The only thought that I kept on having was that I was going to have a little brother or sister. I actually wished for it to be a sister. No offense. It was the happiest day for us all. The months went by and our mother's abdomen grew. But there was one month, say the third, since the news was broken that someone came by the house. _

_It was late at night._

_I was asleep, but something woke me up._

The village of Xi'an had settled down for what was another busy day for the marketing career. The oil lamps were lit, setting the streets in a spotted glow of yellow and black. Up in Chen and Keera's house, Jai lay silently asleep underneath the covers of her bed. Her eyes were closed and a look of peace and tranquillity came over her. But then her ear twitched. Then it flicked again. Jai fluttered her eyes open, feeling them to be heavy. The feline sat up in her bed and rubbed the tiredness out of her eyes and listening for what it was that so rudely woke her up.

It sounded like voices, one of them belonging to her father but the other was quite unknown to her.

The young lioness slipped out of her bed, and without the sound of a step, crept over to her bedroom door. She opened it a crack, peering down the hallway to find her mother and father's room door closed. Keera had to still be asleep. Jai slipped out of the small gap of the opened door and silently padded to the corner wall at the top of the stairs. The feline's auburn round ears tilted forward upon hearing her father's voice down the stairs at the lower levels of the house, it sounded like the he was in the kitchen. The lioness could not make out what words were being swapped between Chen and this mysterious creature: she needed to get closer.

Remembering the stairs to be creaky no matter who it was that stepped on them or how heavy they were, Jai used her martial arts training and natural subtleness by leaping over the banister and dropping to the ground floor with the sound of a fallen feather. The feline was somewhat pleased with her effort. She moved up against the wall as she peered round each corner to make sure no one was in the room before slipping in an making her way to the kitchen.

Keeping close to the shadows Jai spotted her father leaning against the counter, his large ashen arms crossed over his bare chest. His sapphire eyes were hard like ice. Jai could not see the person who it was Chen was talking to. If she moved it would give away her position. She decided to remain put for now.

"I am not asking much of you, Chen." A voice spoke slowly.

"You are asking for me to put my family at risk!" The wolf growled from his throat. "I can't tell if you have a family or not, but to me they are the most important thing in the world."

"I understand." The voice acknowledged after a moment's pause. "You treasure you family well. I can honour you for that." A tone of severity and slight menace reached the figure's vocal response. "But I too once had a wife and child. I gave everything for and to them, but no matter how much you shelter them from danger the world has a funny way of getting what it wants."

Almost as if she were mimicking her father's movements Jai's ears tilted back in suspicion, Chen's had done the same. The wolf bent an eyebrow at the figure and stared on with a cold gaze. "I do not mean to be rude, but I if I knew no better I'd say that was a threat."

Jai could imagine the creature smiling kindly. His voice was too steady and light humoured for a grieving response or taking offense. "You're a good judge of character, Chen. I'll give you that. But you sometimes fail to understand what it is that I simply ask of you." There was another pause. "Tell you what, you come with us and you can bring your family along too. I'm sure your daughter will like the snow; give her a little place to play around in."

Jai saw her father's expression go as cold as his eyes. And in some way, thought it was unsure why, she too felt offended by the creature's words. The feline saw her chance to stop the conversation before it escalated into something fatal, and to get a good look at who it was Chen was getting all worked up about. Ruffling up her fur on her head and putting a mock expression of extreme tiredness on her face Jai took a deep inhale and stepped out of her hiding spot.

Chen's eyes immediately went from the visitor to his daughter. The wolf pushed from the counter and was on his feet, arms at his sides. "Jai..." He said, somewhat surprised by her presence. "...what are you doing awake?"

The feline rubbed her half-opened eyes. "I heard you talking to someone." At least there was no point to lie.

Chen's face drained some of its normal colour, his fur looking more white than grey. A strangle of dread gripped at his throat. He forced a weary smile. "It's nothing to worry about." He tried to reassure her, but failed regrettably. He motioned to the visitor who was sitting at the table. "I was just having a conversation with...an old friend of mine." Chen had to restrict his will power from growling portentously at the creature.

Jai looked bleakly to where her father was indicating and found herself to be staring at a large mud-coloured rhino. Her eyes grew a bit but she did not want to give away her make believe expression. It proved some difficulty. The guy was huge, at least twice the size of her father! The chair upon which he sat looked as if it would give into his weight at any moment. He had a fierce look about him but his face was stoic, void of any emotion like a stone wall. His brown eyes, however, made Jai's fur visible bristle. She felt as if his large cold hands had touched when they were actually lying across his bulging stomach. The feline shivered and rubbed her arms, both to pretend a breeze had passed through the room and to shake off the icy feeling.

She turned to her father with a mixture of apology and pleading. "I'm sorry I woke up."

As Chen looked into her eyes he seemed to have read her mind, seeing the messages in her gleaming globes and nodding with a soft grin. "It's okay. Just go back to bed." It sounded more like an order than a suggestion.

Jai hung her head sideways to add to the act of being recently woken up. She slowly closed her eyes and nodded. "Alright then, good night." The feline said as she sloppily turned on her heels and went back to her room.

_As soon as I went back to bed I waited by my bedroom door, listening as the rhino left- or was rather told to leave by our father. I officially went back to sleep an hour later, too busy plagued with what I had heard and seen. A few more months went by and there was no sign or whisper of that guy. I was almost stupid to believe that he had left our family alone for good._

_I think our mother was about six months pregnant with you when the worst thing happened. The rhino returned with a small army, made up of ruthless warriors and criminal from his gangs. I remember everything that happened that night, all but one._

Jai sprang from her bed, smelling a noxious scent in the air and waking up to find herself in cloud of thick black smoke flowing around her bedroom. The feline burst through her bedroom door and into the hallway. She immediately doubled back as a wave of heat slapped her on the muzzle. The lioness brought up her arms to shield her face and eyes from the roaring flames that danced on the walls of the hallway. The heat was incredulous; Jai had already broken out in a sweat. The lioness felt her lungs scream for air but all they tasted was the heavy fumes of the burning house.

There were forms moving on the ground floor of the house, shadows running through the flames. They all charged for a familiar looking figure in the centre of all the commotion by the front door. In the light of the flames Jai recognised the figure's powerful and fluid movements of martial arts, the pointy ears and bushy grey tail. It was Chen! He was fighting off the assailants one by one; knocking them aside with explosive force powered his hulking physique.

There came a fearsome cry, drawing Jai's attention to down the hallway. She blinked and peered through the gap in her arms down the corridor where she found her parents' bedroom door ajar. Jai's eyes widened. It was Keera who made that shriek. Ignoring the flames Jai dashed down the foyer and into her mother and father's bedroom. Once inside the lioness stopped for a minute and stared at the back of a wolf. The lupine reeled his head round and looked at Jai with drooling fangs and a death look in his black eyes. Jai glanced past the wolf for a second and saw Keera huddled in the floor, shaking with fear and terror on her face in the form of tears.

"Jai!" She screeched, recognising the form of her daughter's face. "Run!"

The young lioness would have done as Keera told but for two reasons she could not bring herself to do so. The first motive was because she would never forgive herself in leaving her mother to suffer at the hands of this criminal, and the second reason being the lupine had chosen her as his target instead and lashed out with long sharp claws.

Jai jumped back and tightened her eyes as she lunged forward and struck the wolf's face with a firm fist to his jaw. The creature's head jerked aside and he whined in pain. Jai didn't give her adversary the chance to strike back, so she charged onto the animal with straight and powerful assaults. The feline's training under Chen had paid off well. The creature was soon knocked unconscious and dropped to the floor in a heap of bruises and broken cheek bones. He later crushed by a burning wooden panel that dropped though the roof. Jai huffed deeply through seething teeth before she looked to Keera and ran to her mother's side.

They embraced each other, the growing bulge on her abdomen proving difficult for Jai to hug her mother without harming the cub inside her belly.

"Jai! We have to go! We have to get you out of here!" Keera's said in a stern voice as she separated and held her daughter by the shoulders.

The younger lioness shook her head. "No! I'm not leaving you!"

"They'll kill you if you don't." Keera warned.

"And they'll do the same to you! I can protect myself." Jai retorted. "You're not safe here, Mama. We have to get you out of here first." She placed her paw against Keera's swelling belly and looked into her mother's eyes sincerely. "Think of the cub!"

Keera opened her mouth to speak but no words came out. The feline soon closed her jaw and nodded. Jai was right, she knew it. She sighed regrettably. "Alright. We'll go together."

Jai flashed a smile and moved over to the bed, ripping the covers free and wrapping them around her mother's shoulders. "This will protect you and the cub from the fire." She stated. "Don't take it off. And no matter what happens: if you see an opening to escape, take it! Don't stop, not for me or for Baba! Just get safe and call for help!" As much as Keera didn't like being ordered by her daughter she was proud of how the female could take charge and seem so calm considering the critical situation at hand. It made her smile knowing at how much Jai had grown up. She had the strength and energy of her father but the subtle, beauty and gentle touch of from the elderly feline herself. Keera nodded as she took hold of the thick covering over her body and was taken in Jai's arms. "Okay, here we go."

Together both mother and daughter ran from the room, Jai holding the hunched Keera close, keeping low so neither of them would breathe in the toxic fumes that now engulfed the entire house. The gradually, and cautiously, moved down the hallway and made it to the stairs. They made their way down when Jai looked up to her father still fighting off the attackers. "Baba!" she called once the wolf knocked out his last opponent.

Chen snapped his blazing sapphire eyes in the women's direction. "Jai! Keera!" Chen said, turning and leaping into the air to deliver a direct kick to a charging boar's faced. The lupine was unaware of the shadow sneaking up from behind. "Go! Get out!" The wolf bellowed. The creature in the flames rose up a paw and had every intention of striking Chen without him knowing. But the animal was interrupted when he heard an aggressive roar and was knocked off his feet and sent flying through the wall at the front of the house and into the stone cobbled street.

Chen punched his enemy in the throat, the boar dropping down to the floor with his airways crushed, before turning and finding Jai standing where the silent attacker once was. Father and daughter looked at each other and shared a simple smile. Both their faces then fell and they pointed past each. "Look out!" They both shouted. Instantly realising that they had both just said the same thing the wolf and feline spun around each other and delivered powerful kicks into two attackers from either side. The duo of enemies flipped and landed on the warm floor with broken and bloodied noses.

Chen and Jai glanced at one another again and at the same time nodded. But then the wolf's face gazed past his daughter to a large shadow materialising from the shadows. "Jai! Move!" Chen bellowed as the young female slowly turned around and found herself staring face to face with the memorable features of the rhino that was sitting in the kitchen that night some months ago with his dark brown eyes staring down past his sharp horn and into her own. Jai felt herself shrink in his presence, too stunned by fear to move. "Jai! Move!" Chen's voiced echoed in her ears.

The rhino snorted and raised a massive mud-coloured arm. Jai still did not move. With a great swing of his arm in an arc the gigantic animal smacked Jai with the back of his hand. The might and potency following with it, thanks to his size and muscle, being unbelievable that the young feline whelped as she was knocked off her feet and into the nearest burning wall. Chen screamed in horror and Keera wailed with her husband as their daughter smashed into the wall with an unpleasant thud before falling limp to the ground. There was a groaning sound and the roof from which Jai lay above collapsed down upon her.

Her body lay still under the beams.

She was suddenly cut off by a wall of flames and burning debris.

_I don't remember anything else after I was struck, but a warm sensation around me and the screams of our mother and father. I thoughts I was going to die, as I stared into those abyssal orbs and was thrown into the wall. But I eventually woke up, though not inside the house. I was in a hospital._

_Someone had rescued me from the flames but I was told that whoever they were took off as soon as they brought me there. I couldn't get anything about my rescuer other than they had a pair of green eyes._

_I asked what of our parents. The doctors and nurses wouldn't look at me or say a word. I dared not to believe them. I refused the very thought of them both perishing for my sake, also the cub, you, dying along with them. I tried to pry information out of them as to whether the people behind the attack were caught. I was told the building had been destroyed, nothing left but a pile of rubble. Anyone who was on the inside couldn't have survived. I did not believe them! Nor that Mama and Baba, and you, were dead or the guy behind it. So I made a promise. I promised that I would track down his followers one by one till I found and killed him for bringing our family to such standards._

_I left the hospital and week after week I kept to my promise. I won't lie, Shen, I killed, I maimed, I tortured. I did everything I could to find the one responsible. It was one night, though, that I chasing another lead that I bumped into Leo. So you see how our stories combined. Because Leo was had come from Pure Ones he did not know how to act or behave around people such as us. I was furious at him for making me lose my lead and almost killed him myself- had it not been for the people watching. _

_But Leo, here, said he wanted to prove himself and repay me for losing the guy I was following. And his skills proved their worth, we worked together and followed his trail –well Leo did- by scent and track marks all the way back to the camp up here in the Dragon's Pass Mountains. Due to me not knowing Leo's origin I assumed he was just a bit crazy, but the thoughts were irrelevant at the time._

_Anyway, we found the camp. _

_Both me and Leo walked right in and were 'greeted' by the leader. When I laid eyes on his grotesque body I wanted to just run right at him and tear his throat out. But I restrained myself, for the moment. It took a while for him to remember me, but when he did he just smiled and talked about how our parents died in the fire. It was in that spur of the moment I took the nearest sword and struck him through the heart as he laughed in all his glory. I watched as he crumpled to the ground. The very sword that I use now is the one that I killed him with; the throwing knives and bows belonged to him, however. I spat on his dying body as the life drained from his eyes. _

_I had done it; I had killed the guy responsible for our family's separation. But it was then I realised that there was nothing left to do. The gang surrounded me and Leo; he had grown quite close to me during the time of our following my lead. The guys backed off and they kept on murmuring about their dead Commander and that, by traditional honour, I was to take his place. _

_I thought about and rose to the occasion. I took over as Commander and everyone bowed down to me. Even Leo did. To thank him for his services I promoted him as my 'General' of the gang, as my second in command. After hearing news of Hei Xin, me and Leo recruited him and gave that bastard a place as Captain, under Leo, of course._

_A few months passed and during one winter's day when the storms were frequent and the air was colder than usual I woke up in bed thinking: if our parents were still alive, you would have be born. I had to look for you. I sent scouts out in search. They came back with news our parents were alive, but I had also learnt that our mother had ran off to the Valley of Peace with you and that father was in quick pursuit._

_I left Leo in charge and ran out after them with every means of reuniting our family again. But when I arrived at the Valley of Peace- in a storm that seemed way worse that here in the Dragon's Pass- I bared witness as our father killed mother, just to get you. I watched as they- and with Master Shifu- fought in the snow. I watched as father tore at mother's throat and became a monster._

_I was too late._

The lioness now stood just on the rim of the cave's entrance with her eyes staring out into the blizzard, almost seeing the forms of her past take shape in the violent storm. She leaned against the rocky surface and crossed her arms over her chest, wrapping them around herself. Her shoulder no longer ached thanks to her being completely feral. Tears dripped down from the lioness' reddened eyes and stung in the cold winter winds. But she did not care. "Not a day goes by when I hate myself for not jumping in and stopping our parents from killing one another." Jai stated clearly. "I could have prevented all that pain and suffering." She looked over her shoulder and into the cave. Leo was still in his spot by the fire, looking from Jai to Shen. The darkly coloured feline's head hung low, ears flattened against his skull in sadness. "I could have brought our family back together."

Shen said nothing.

Jai snarled a little and faced the blizzard once more. "But I didn't! I was weak! It was after our mother died was that I told myself to never forgive our father. It was he who was the cause of all our misery!" Shen's ears went up and he raised his head, staring at Jai's back. His golden eyes were full of enquiring. "I watched as the years rolled by, season by season as you grew. I watched from the sidelines, in the shadows as you grew. I watched as you trained. I was even in the crowd the day you met Fu, your wife. But she was only your girlfriend back then, right?" Shen still said nothing, but Jai did not require an answer. "And then the rampage with Tai Lung, oh, I loved that part. But not as much as watching you fight with Shifu and the Furious Five whilst the Dragon Warrior tore our father to pieces." The feline snarled with a hint of gratefulness in it. "He deserved it! He's to blame for all of this! It was him who could have saved us in the past!"

"Didn't he, though?" Shen asked speaking for the first time since Jai had begun her story.

Jai wheeled around and looked at her brother sharply. "What?"

Shen shrugged his shoulders. "Didn't he protect us? I mean, he may have declined whatever it was that rhino guy was offering but he managed to get Mama and me out safely." Jai growled but Shen ignored her and starred deeply into the fire. "When I was on my travels across China, and further on, I stopped at the village of Xi'an many times. During my visits I heard stories of our father, though I was too blinded by anger and hatred to understand they were about him. I listened to tales of how he managed to get our Mama safe and out of the flames. He then ran back inside to get you. But only came rushing back out and searching the streets, calling your name." The feline looked from the flames and glanced to Jai whose face seemed riddled with shock and surprise. "By your own story you said you woke up in a hospital, maybe you had already been rescued by then. The villagers also talked of a rhino seen running from the burning house that night of the fire thought they never saw his face nor got a name out of him."

Leo looked from Shen to Jai. "It all seems to make perfect sense." He agreed.

"Our father was only corrupted by the sudden loss of you, believing in it so gravely that when I was born our mother refused to give me over because she was afraid of what Chen could turn me into or that our mother may have lost me too." Shen added. "They were only scared, Jai. Not of each other but of loosing another child. It's a parent's worst nightmare to live on pass their kids. It scare's the living daylights out of them! Don't be mad at our parents, Jai. Be mad at the ones who truly caused the mess."

The female looked between her lover and brother. She sighed profoundly. "I guess you're right."

Silence fell over the cave.

Jai had wiped the last of her tears and now sat back down, looking distraughtly into the fire. Shen watched her, eyeing the expression on her face. Leo had closed his eyes and was quietly resting in the warmth of the fire, his chest slowly rising and falling. Shen glanced a couple of times to the lioness before finally building up the courage to say something, something meaningful.

"Jai." He called softly. She looked from the fire to him. "You remember that you said to me that our family would always be alive so long as we have each other?" The feline slowly bobbed her head. "And that it's time for us to continue our parents' work and show this country, maybe even this world, what is meant by the power of love?"

Jai hiked an eyebrow. She wondered as to where Shen was leading with his. "What are you trying to say?"

The feline smiled and scooted him body closer to hers, leaning in as if he were telling a major secret. "I think I finally understand what you meant by it!"

"What?" The lioness asked, unsure herself by the meaning of her words.

"You just want us to live as a family again. You want us to not let each other go." Shen replied as he leaned back, propped up by his paws. "Well, I'm making a promise to you, right now: I will not let anything come to harm you again. All your life has been made of heartache and distress, just like mine, it's time you understood what it meant to have a family again." Jai opened her mouth to say something but Shen cut her off with a raised claw. "But on one condition." He coldly added. Jai's red eyes urged him to go on. "You must leave the alliance you used to Command behind. Forget about them."

Jai looked into the fire for second time and tightened her lips. Shen stared willingly at her, waiting for the response. Sooner or later the lioness lifted her head and looked to her brother with a great smile. "Okay. Consider them forgotten!"

"Not completely." Leo's calm voice piped up his red eyes, gazing at them from across the fire. Both felines looked at the wolf, confused. "Hei Xin is now out to get Jai, me, you and your family, Shen." Leo hunched forward till his muzzle was almost over the flames of the fiery pit." You forget, Jai, he's a military Captain. Hei doesn't know the word stop. He'll keep looking for you and will tear down any village, city or person that stands in his way."

Jai growled whereas Shen looked discouraged, but the feline's soon lit up and as shimmer of purpose and fortitude lit up in his eyes. "Then we take the fight to him!"

Jai snapped her head to Shen. "Are you crazy, Shen? He has an army at his command. There's only the three of us."

The Black Panther shook his head. "Wrong. Leo has his brother, Husto and the pack." Leo nodded approvingly. "And I know the Kung fu Masters of the valley of Peace. If I can somehow make them realise that you are meant for good instead of evil they make take cause to join the fight and help us. I know Po will do it without question."

Jai glanced between the two males and groaned, slapping a paw up to her forehead. "I'm surrounded by hormonally poisoned men." Both Leo and Shen laughed. Jai dragged her paw down her face. "Alright. Let's do it."

Shen grinned brightly. "It's settled then. We leave for the village of Xi'an tomorrow morning. But not before we make a quick pit stop."


	18. The Green Eyed Wolf

Is Love Safe?

Chapter Eighteen- The Green-Eyed Wolf

Shen, Jai, Leo, Husto and Hei Xin (c) Mine

* * *

The sun shone brightly, but it welcomed no warmth down upon the mountainside. The great fiery sphere glimmered radiantly into the mouth of the cave, setting the stone floor in a sparkle as the few droplets of melting snow and ice that dropped down from the ceiling caught its magnificent blaze. A wind circled in the air, twisting and curling as it snaked its way through the air, carrying the faint echoing sound of a hollow howl. As if with a mind of its own, the gust flew gracefully into the dent in the mountainside, starring over the occupants that slept in the cave. The lioness and wolf both rested up against each, peacefully sleeping as they shared one another's bodily heat.

The draught turned away from them and gazed down on the lone black feline hidden underneath the cloak used as a blanket, looking on through its empty eyes. The wind gently brushed up against the panther's cheek. Shen rubbed his jaw lazily and groaned in protest to the freezing touch. The breeze slithered around and went up against Shen's face again, running over his ear. And with it the air whispered something as clear and soft as the current on which it rode.

"_Shen...wake up, Shen."_

The feline battered his eyes open, still half asleep. "Huh...what?"

"_Shen. Come, Shen."_

The feline rubbed his sore eyes that blinked stupidly at the bright light entering the cave. He shuddered at the cold touch of the breeze in his ear; he flicked it in means to drive the cold away. But the wind did not falter.

"_Shen, open your eyes."_

Though the tone was caring, Shen's eyes snapped open at the commandment. He suddenly felt wide away. His senses were at their peak. He could see perfectly, the cave was brightly lit but every fine detail naturally carved into the walls, floor and ceiling, the smallest of rock minerals stood out as if ten times their original size. The freezing breeze on his face tickled his fur, quivering at the touch. The smell of the dying fire and ashes filled his nose. Never had he been so awakened to the world. His ears cocked upright and he sat away from the wall. The voice still whispered softly, reaching into his mind.

"_Rise, Shen. Follow." _

Short and like an echo, from someone far away, Shen understood every word. The feline grabbed his cloak and slowly got to his feet. The breeze on his cheek left him and danced out of the cave, taunting him to follow. Though the warmth returned to his muzzle, Shen yearned for the feeling again. It spoke to him.

"_Follow, Shen. Follow me." _

The black feline could not help himself. Stepping over the fire, taking a quick glance to Leo and Jai curled up on each other; Shen stepped out from the cave's mouth and stood erect at the entrance. The storm blizzard had completely passed, the clouds were gone. The snow was deep; all of the evidence of the fight between him and Jai had vanished under the new layers. The sky was a brilliant blue. A gust swept in low and rubbed up Shen, the feline both shivered at the coldness of the air but welcomed it like an old friend. The feline closed his eyes and donned his cloak. He opened up his eyes with a sigh and looked out across the scenery before him. Then something caught his gaze. Just to the left, further down the hillside by the gathering of trees a shape stood. Shen blinked. For a moment Shen felt fear and anger grip his heart, thinking that one of Hei Xin's men had found them. But this creature did not run or scream as it fled. It just stood there, staring right at, and for some strange reason Shen felt it staring into him. A breeze circled Shen's head, the voice whispering in his ear again.

"_I see you, Shen. Come." _

Shen's ear twitched but his eyes never left the shadow. Then, as if sinking back into the tree, the figure disappeared. "H-Hey!" Shen called out as he jumped down into the snow and ran after it. Passing the tree Shen saw that the form was not there. Shen's eyes darted for the creature. "Where are you?" He called to the morning air. The winds replied.

"_Over here. Follow me. Listen to me, Shen." _

Shen then caught sight of the creature, standing by another tree just a small distance away. "W-Wait." Shen found himself whispering back. The figure vanished behind the bark once more. Shen ran up to the tree, again it was gone. Tree by tree Shen followed this mysterious person deeper into the woods till he came a small opening beneath the branches and leaves.

The feline pushed aside a branch and gasped. Shen found himself standing on the edge of a stone den. Shen was marvelled by the sight of it all. A beautifully carved boulder sat atop two separate slabs of rocks, almost making an ark. The black feline walked into the centre of the opening and gazed up to the bravura of trees that fenced the area from the rest of the world. He looked down at a small stream running by his feet through the snow, its crystal water swivelling into a rotund pond just below the large boulder. Shen lowered his head and squinted at the ground, the embankment surrounding the little ravine and pond was flush with green grass and small poppies. Odd. Shen crouched down beside the river and gently placed his paw on the grass. It felt warm. The strands of grass swept against his paw pad and fur. No sunlight engulfed them, yet how was it the grass could stay warm?

Shen all of a sudden felt thirsty, his throat went dry and ached. The water tantalised him, glittering up against his face. The feline did not hold back, dipping his paw into the shallow water and scooping up a tiny puddle in his paw. Shen raised it up to his lips. Hs eyes bulged and he immediately retched. The water tasted awful, metallic almost.

"It's not to drink, y'know." The voice in the winds spoke. Shen halted; there was no airy whisper or hollow tone in this voice. It sounded real. The feline turned and, as if someone had torn a hole in the trees, was blinded by the shimmering light. He rose up his arms and shielded his eyes, adjusting them just to catch a form moving in the light.

"What? Who are you?" Shen growled as he stepped back, the light burned his eyes.

"It may look beautiful, the water, but it is tainted." The voice spoke again. "It's good to see you, Shen."

The feline snarled angrily. "How do you know my name?" The figure of light did not respond. Having had enough of this Shen flattened his ears and shouted. "Show yourself!"

The light vanished. Shen's eye rapidly blinked. He looked down and allowed them to refocus before glaring up at the person behind the wall of daylight. Shen froze.

Atop the boulder, poised, on all fours a wolf stood before the Black Panther. Shen's heart sank. The great creature's coat was white as the snow, illuminating its flawless coat against the complex camouflage of nature that kept it hidden. The wolf's head was held so high that Shen thought it could touch the sky with its muzzle. Shen felt small and shrunken in the creature's presence for it was twice his size and that of Leo's. Its powerful legs held up the bulking frame of a proud body topped with the graceful head of features that defined everything that was a lupine. Something stared down from the long muzzle onto Shen: a pair of keen, searching eyes. They were as hard as steel, never moving, glittering furiously as they came. They held a touch of caring, intelligence and an ancient feeling of a predator.

This wolf had no set of normal eyes. They were green. But not just a light green, that Shen had seen in Po's eyes, no. This creature's eyes were a strong set of blazing emeralds that made the leaves and the grass around them seem dark and dead of life.

"Hello, Shen. I have been waiting for you." The wolf smiled dearly.

Shen was speechless, still gawking in awe at his visitor. "How...w-what...who are you?"

"I have been known by many names," the white lupine growled softly. "...called by so many that I don't even know anymore." He laughed heartedly and shook his head. "Quite ridiculous, if you ask me, for a creature not to know its own name."

"You are a wolf?"

The creature looked somewhat hurt at Shen's words. "Oh no, my dear Shen, I am much more than that." The white lupine dipped his head and slowly leapt down onto the ground by the stream; his tail rose up into the air and wagged slightly. "But that is not important right now, is it?"

"Isn't it?" Shen asked, dipping one of his eyebrows.

The great wolf smiled and sat down. He still was somehow taller than Shen. "You tell me."

Shen, at first, did not know how to respond to this white creature. The first thought that kept on re-entering his mind was fear. Fear that he should turn and run back for the cave; to wake up Jai and Leo. Should this guy follow maybe they would be able to hold him off. But, he also thought, if this wolf was here to do harm why hadn't he done it already? Shen gazed in the wolf's eyes; he saw nothing that showed he was looking into his death. This creature was a friend. Shen decided to show compassion.

The feline relaxed. "I guess not."

"There we go." The wolf beamed, he bobbed his head, motioning to the snow covered floor by the edge of the pond. "Take a seat, Shen."

Shen looked down to the floor and then up to his companion. He laughed nervously. "Yeah, I don't intend on getting my pants wet, thanks."

The wolf just kept smiling. "Take a seat, Shen." He repeated.

This time the feline felt he could not deny. Something heavy built up in his stomach, drawing Shen to the ground. His legs trembled and the animal sank to the floor. Shen could not fight it. He waited for the cold touch of frost, ice and snow to seep through his pants but instead he felt the recognising warm sensation against his buttocks. Now sitting cross-legged on the floor Shen looked around him to find the snow had vaporized. He was sitting on grass, the mud was soft on his backside and a red poppy rubbed against his thigh. Shen could not believe his eyes. He snapped up to look at his smiling friend who watched on.

Shen pointed to the ground. "Wasn't this just snow a few seconds ago?"

The wolf's eyes were on the grass, a focusing glint in their gaze. He heard Shen's voice and looked up to the feline. "Was it?" He asked back.

Shen was dumbfounded. He blinked stupidly, again. "Was it?" He found himself parroting.

The white wolf just laughed again. "Shen, I must say it has been a pleasure watching you grow. You're a fine young man, I mean look at you. A kung fu master, married, a father. The years may not have been kind to you in the past, I'll admit, but the rewards in the end have been fulfilling." The lupine dipped his head to the side. Shen somehow felt himself mimicking his new found friend, leaning off to the side and tipping his head to match the wolf's gaze. "Wouldn't you agree?"

With his head still hanging aside, Shen nodded. "Much." He smiled. "I have a wonderful wife, and a loving child."

"And now a sister, a long lost sister." The wolf added, flicking one his ears.

Shen's smile broadened. "Jai." He whispered.

"Life may have had its ups and downs for you, Shen, but you have always been sheltered from the storm. You have survived where most would fail and let their lives be taken freely." The wolf shook his head and pursed his lips. "Not you, Shen. You have always been strong. Always a fighter, always wanting to survive for another day." The lupine corrected his head so it was upright.

Shen followed, putting his neck straight again. He chuckled. "Yeah, I guess you're right."

The white creature smiled knowingly, a glitter in his eyes of the truth. He blinked his roaring eyes, the glint was gone. "You're parents are proud." He growled.

This caught Shen's attention. You're parents _are_ proud? Surely he meant that his parents _were_ proud? The black feline decided to hold his tongue on the wolf. But his sitting friend saw right through him, as if reading his mind. "I mean what I say, Shen. You heard me correctly. But do not think on it, my friend. Now is not the time."

"Then when _is_ the time?" Shen found himself snarling.

The wolf sighed and got up onto his four paws again. "There are some things, Shen that I usually am forbidden to show you. There are rules that I must follows, laws if you will." He padded slowly around Shen, the feline sitting perfectly still as the large lupine walked around him. The creature's green eyes met Shen as he continued his loop; again and again he very slowly padded around the feline. Those perfect emerald orbs downcast in sadness and worry. The wolf's white coat shivered and shuddered in front of the Black Panther. "But I must warn you. I must let you know of what is to come." He snarled as much to himself as to Shen.

The Black Panther felt his heart tighten and a sickening sensation knotted in his stomach. Concern and confusion made his fur bristle. "What are you talking about?"

The green-eyed wolf walked past Shen's back, lightly brushing him with his tail. Shen felt his body become his own again. The feline flexed his arms and fingers, looking into his claws thoughtfully. "Come, Shen." The lupine's voice tenderly commanded. "Come by the water and sit by me." Although he could move again, Shen felt something pull him towards the little pond where the wolf stood in waiting. The feline found himself crawling forward on all fours like his wolf friend to the edge of the pool. He looked at his green-eyed companion. "I need you to listen to me, Shen. Very carefully. I may be breaking rules by doing this but I cannot just sit by." His tone was grave.

"What is it you want me to do?" Shen asked.

The wolf dropped his head. "Look into the water, Shen." He said. "Look into the water." The Black Panther eyed his companion, wondering. He stepped up to the small pond and as the wolf lifted his to allow Shen the room to drop his own head, the feline stared deeply into the water. "Now, tell me what you see."

Shen glared into the water. Looking only at the rippling mirror image of himself staring back. "Nothing, just my reflection." He sighed.

"No." The wolf said instantly. Shen lifted his head. The wolf shook his muzzle and motioned to the pond once more, lightly pawing at it just so a few ripples waved away from his paw made contact. "Look, closer."

Shen rolled his yellow eyes and dipped his head again, hanging it above the water surface. He stared down incredulously. Again, all he could see was himself. "Like I said before, it's just my..." The feline stopped short. The image in the water began to change. Looking into the water Shen saw his face fade and he felt himself fall in. The small pond engulfed him, swallowing him up.

The feline's body had not really fallen into the water, but it lay slumped on the embankment. His eyes closed as if he were asleep.

"I'm sorry, Shen." The large white wolf, with green eyes, apologized. He placed a paw to the incapacitated feline's forehead. "I'm so sorry."

Inside his mind, Shen floated about under the water. He gasped, but found that he could breathe as if on the surface. He looked at himself, staring up to the water exterior where the shimmering white light of day broke through and illuminated all around him. A force then pulled at Shen's foot, dragging him deeper, away from the light and into the abyssal depths. He screamed for help and tried to swim upwards but the weight on his leg was stronger.

He was now shrouded in shadows. Everything was silent, he could not see, nor hear, feel, touch, taste or smell. He was blind in the dark.

Then a bright flash bust infront of the feline and Shen instinctively curled up and shut his eyes. When he finally opened them Shen found himself sprinting across a sheet of rain curtained in front of him. At first Shen saw blurred images run by. Then he saw that they were buildings of stone, some of them torn, broken and even reduced to rubble. He looked on through the falling rain and spotted shapes were moving up ahead. Suddenly Shen found himself standing on a road. It was large and widely spread. He recognised the place immediately.

"Xi'an." He cried; glad to be back in the town again. But his thrill was short lived as he looked down and saw a red puddle forming at his feet. The feline looked away from his being and saw a body spawn out on the stone floor. Then another, and another. Everywhere Shen looked bodies of various animals littered the street, tainting the ground a sickly red colour. Shen wanted to hurl. It was an eerie sight to behold. All of the bodies, a bleak grey colour. Everything was a distraught, dreary colour; but the crimson blood that leaked from their bodies stood out in the ashen colouring.

He then felt himself crying, for what reasons he did not know the tears just came. The ground then moved beneath him and he flew down the road to where a group of familiar faces stood huddled close together. Shen acknowledged them without fail. There, staring down at the ground was Po, Tigress, Tai Lung, Shifu and the rest of the Furious Five. Even Leo and Husto were there. Shen wanted to reach out and take hold of anyone of them, but something held him back. He felt as though they were a distant memory.

He noticed their wounded faces, eyes all glassy with falling tears.

Following their eyes he looked down on two forms hunched over a lying body. Shen watched himself drawing nearer to the two shadows. As he looked down he felt his heart strike with pain. The feline cried out in agony and huffed profoundly. The sting then came again and Shen fell to the floor, red blood fresh and crimson dripped from his mouth with the rain. The feeling burned inside of him, Shen clutched his chest. He saw himself now looking down on the lying body. But the pain in his chest made it hard for him to see who or what it was he stared down on. Shen snarled as another pain struck his heart and he collapsed to the floor. There was stillness about him and everything went dark again.

There was a cry of anguish, but Shen could not decipher if it was his own voice or someone else's.

His felt his fur rise on the back of his neck and he growled furiously, his face curled into a snarl. His whole body began shaking violently and his eyes widened with horror. The picture buried itself deep inside his mind. It was his voice that he heard next, shouting out in a roar.

"Shen!" Jai shook her brother frantically, waking him from his sleep. "Shen!"

The Black Panther shot his arms out and clawed at the wall, panting heavily as his eyes snapped to all around before resting on his sister's face. He spotted Leo hunched behind her. The cave was alight as the morning sun rays crept in. "What is it?" Jai asked, her voice dripping with tiredness. Her red eyes half open.

"Bad dream?" Said Leo, blinking a few times to properly wake himself up. He took in a big yawn.

"No, not a dream." Shen whispered bitterly. "It was real. I heard a voice and walked out into the woods." Jai looked at Leo, the wolf's ruby eyes motioned for Shen to continue. "And I came across this white wolf, he had green eyes. He told me to look into the water. And I saw something."

Though confused, Leo blinked his eyes and asked. "What did you see?"

"I...I think it was the future." Shen answered, recalling the images still fresh in his mind. "I saw the battle against Hei Xin: we had won."

"Then why were you shouting in your sleep?" Jai asked, confused by her brother's words.

"Because," Answered Shen, shuddering helplessly. "...I think I have seen my own death."


	19. True Faith

Is Love Safe?

Chapter nineteen- True Faith

Shen, Jai, Leo, Fu, Hao, Chen Hue Leigh, Keera, Hei Xin, Ming and little Shen (C) mine.

* * *

Though morning had arrived to the mountains of the Dragon's Pass a yawning exhaustion weighed down on Shen's eyes. They no longer glowed with the intensity of dancing flames but were hollow, pale and empty of the vigorous life that the feline once burned with. It had been a good hour or two since his horrific nightmare, Shen hadn't been keeping track of time. His mind was only filled by the disturbing images of what he had seen.

The air was not of the level of freezing but Shen's fur shivered; his tail wrapped itself around his legs. The feline hunched over and drew his knees closer to his chest, hugging them tightly with his arms. He stared out, above his arms, to the rising sun in the distance. Though he was as young as the day, Shen felt himself grow increasingly old suddenly.

The stone boulder upon which he sat numbed his backside; it was just among other things that Shen had lost sense of. It was like his soul had left him and it was staring back on a shrivelled shell of what the feline once was. A breeze brushed over the creature, whipping up the tails of his cloak. Shen shuddered fearfully, remembering the all-to-real touch of the wind. The whispering voice still echoed in his ear. Shen instinctively slipped his paws up over his head and held down his ears, trying to block out the ghostly tone. It would not leave him.

The faint thump of his heart reminded Shen that he was still alive, but all he could feel was the sting of a blade striking him in the chest. Shen glanced up to the washed-out blue sky, still catching the crescent curve of the moon that had not yet left the heavens. He stared with dreaming eyes of hopeful promises, wishing with all his being that they would come true. These things, however, were not pleas for himself, but for family and friends he had come to know. He begged in secret to the moon that Fu would not become a widow and Hao without a father. He could not bear to even imagine such thoughts. But there was the chance she may marry again. Yes, there was an opportunity. Shifu, to die knowing that his foster father- the one who raised him from a cub- already believed he had passed on. Yet, why did Shen still feel the yen of desire to tell the truth? He was believed dead once, maybe it was better to keep it that way. Tai Lung, Shen was sure the snow leopard could cope. He had a family of his own now, Ming and little Shen. It somewhat relaxed the distraught feline to know his life and legacy would be passed on to the young snow leopard cub, he _was _named after his uncle.

Po and Tigress, they would understand. Becoming his first, true friends Shen realized that his secret from Shifu and the rest of the Furious Five would die along with him. They had saved him and he had repaid the favour in return. Shen mentally wished them a happy life together.

Jai...

Shen lost his thoughts and dipped his head between his arms.

Jai, his long lost sister whom he had the utmost happiness in understanding existed made the feline's heart beat a little faster. Even if their reunion was a surprise and not what Shen believed to be the best way to reconcile with a member of his true family, he could not stand to lose her. His heart slowed to its light rhythm of vacant beats again. He had only known her for a few days, at most. If he died who would the lioness have?

The feline's ears rose a little.

Leo.

Leo would be there for her. He'd protect her. The large wolf already proved his love for her by the display of their escape from Hei Xin's men at the camp. His trust was true. Shen was thankful for the lupine.

And then, Shen thought optimistically, if he were really to die- and the dream was to come true- then he would be reunited with his parents. Chen, his real father, would be standing tall and proud as he watched his son run up to him. Keera would by his side, beautiful as ever with her auburn fur and honey eyes, crying with tears of joy as he opened her arms and embraced her son lovingly. They would be together again. A family forever in the clouds.

Shen felt a glistening tear slip its way upfront, it stung his fur and skin as it rolled down his cheek. The feline sniffed and wiped it away with the flat of his paw. He looked up to the sun once more and felt slightly more like himself again. His eyes had caught a bit of the sun's shine, though were still heavy and dark with the plaguing dream.

Shen glanced to the side as he saw Jai make her way up to the boulder. Her cloak was donned over her shoulders with the dragon handle of her sword sticking out from her midsection. She looked up to him perched on top of the large stone with a caring stare in her red eyes. They met glances for a few seconds before Shen turned away and faced the sun again, resting his jaw on his knees. Jai followed his gaze and blinked a little as she looked into the yellow orb as it continued its ascension.

"It's not going to happen." She soon said.

Though already knowing the answer Shen asked grimly. "What's not?"

Jai's head dropped and she looked at her brother from the corner of her eyes with a sigh. "Don't make me say it, Shen. I don't like the thought of it any more than you do."

Shen never took his eyes of the shining light.

"There is a chance it was just a dream, Shen." Jai sternly put as she laid a paw on the head of the dragon hilt, she grasped it tightly. "There's a possibility it's all just make believe. A joke!" She faced her brother sitting hunched on the boulder. "Maybe this is just your nerves getting the better of you! Think about it, Shen, you've risked your life many times in the past to the point where it was certain death yet here you sit now! Not one little nightmare is going to bring your spirits down!"

Shen's face twisted in a snarl and he jumped down from the rock, his eyes reflected the sun's glow as he walked to the edge of the mountain side. "You don't understand." He growled.

Jai blinked her eyes, again, in question.

"That was not just a dream, it was a vision! It was sight of the future. My future! My _death_!" The feline's head cracked to Jai and the lioness saw how his eyes sliced through the air at her. "Do you have any idea what is at risk, what it's like to feel like your life has lived for nothing." He looked away, his fur quivering with fury. "To build it all up for so long only to have it come crashing down on you?"

Jai's ears fell slightly. "You think this about you?" She growled.

Shen snarled and walked back to the boulder, stopping a short from Jai. He did not make eye contact with his sister. "No! Of course not!" The feline took a few rapid breaths through seething fangs before sighing and closing his eyes. He placed a paw against the boulder for support. "I just...I feel so scared. It's like something's got a hold on me, like...this sudden sense of liberty. A feeling...a feeling of being motion." Jai took a step forward but stopped when Shen straightened his back and took a deep breath through his nose. The cold air rushed up his nostrils. He felt light, like he had left the ground. "The thing is, Jai, I don't care because I'm not there yet. I don't care if I'm not here tomorrow." He kept his head held high in the sky, opening his eyes and looking to Jai with a frighteningly peaceful gaze. He smiled, but there was nothing behind. "Again and again I've taken too much, things that have cost others- like you- too much."

Jai stepped tentatively forward again. Her eyes glimmered with brimming tears. She felt frightened for her brother. It was as if he had become another person entirely. Her brother was slipping away. "Shen, W-why are speaking like this?"

The black feline lowered his head with a heavy sigh and turned, leaning against the rock, sliding down its smooth surface and onto the icy floor. "When I was a very small boy, I used think that the day would never come. I'd see delight in the shadows of the morning sun, watching it rise as I waited in the gloom. Now I see the morning sun if like a drug, that brings me near to the childhood I never had with our parents or you." He turned and faced Jai as she stood there; a tear had already fallen to the floor. "Don't be sad, Jai. It is what we've grown up to understand, to believe, that we're afraid that the price we all pay is our valued destiny comes to nothing."

"Shen," Jai sniffed as she knelt beside her brother. "...there has to be a way to stop this. There has to be something we can do!"

The black feline laughed, but it empty of emotion. Shen rose up a paw and tenderly holding his sister's cheek in it. He stroked her with his thumb, feeling the strands of every single hair. "I can't tell you when it'll happen, Jai. And truth be told, I'm afraid of what I've seen." He then turned so that he was on his knees, facing opposite the lioness; taking up Jai's other cheek in his grasp. He stared deeply into her bloody eyes. "But if I do die, I leave one family for another." He slid his right paw down from her cheek to her chest. He pressed the palm flatly against her breast, but was feeling for something deeper. Something that he could officially touch: her heart. He brought their foreheads together and felt the beat of her heart in his paw, the energy travelling up his arm and to their connected minds.

Jai sobbed heartedly; with Shen talking this way made her believe that the feline was already dead. She whimpered, and took her brother's paw up against her chest in her own. She closed her eyes to fight the waterworks. "I...I understand." She cried quietly.

"I'm glad." Shen whispered with a smile. Jai then fluttered her eyes open and saw as the sun caught a sparkle in her brother's eyes. The lioness pulled away as Shen helped her to stand. Still staring into his eyes, Jai saw the light return to his golden orbs and they witnessed them fill with a new fire. It was unlike anything she had seen in her sibling before. Shen smiled greatly at the corner of his lips and spoke. But this time, it was no longer aching but definite and strung tight with purpose. "Then I'm going to make sure that we finish this battle. I am going to ensure that we win against Hei Xin."

Jai felt herself catching onto his grin.

She then dropped the smile and watched as Shen spun away and walked in a powerful stride back for the cave. The feral lioness followed in her brother's footsteps, trying to keep up with his quick pace. The pair turned right and towards the cave mouth. Leo was sitting by the entrance, resting in the curve. The ashen wolf's ears perked upright and he stood to his feet when he spotted Shen round the corner with Jai in tow. The black feline gave not even a single glance to Leo as he ducked low and walked into the cave. Leo was somewhat enquiring through his mask to Jai.

The lioness stopped by the cave of the mouth and shrugged her shoulders to the wolf, unsure what had come over Shen. Both lovers gazed into the darkness of the cave in search of Shen. Their ears plucked forward when they heard his voice. "If this dream or vision it true and the end for me is coming soon," His voice echoed from inside. "...then I'm going to make sure that if I go down it'll be with a fight."

Leo side glanced to Jai before looking back into the cave. "But, Shen, how can you take down Hei Xin by yourself? He's too powerful for you alone. You're not as strong as him."

Jai nodded her head in agreement. "Leo's right, Shen, you'll surely be killed."

There was a sound of shuffling and eventually Shen's form materialised from the shadows again. He was fastening the belt of the Jai's throwing knives' pack onto his waist beneath the cloak. His face looked down as he tied the endings in a knot before gasping with the pulse of energy he felt from their touch against his fur, like he had felt in the canopy of Jai's tent. "Maybe you're right. Maybe I'm walking right into my own grave. But in that vision I saw one thing in that dream when I was in the village of Xi'an. It was the rising sun."

The feline sighed and raised his head, his eyes were closed peacefully. But when he opened them Jai stepped back a bit and Leo's tail wagged contentedly. The shine and glimmer of Shen's yellow orbs had faded entirely. Now, they were replaced by a scorching set of red irises. They radiated with courage, enthusiasm and the natural sense of a true predator. There was no longer any fear, and it was because of that the feline had changed.

Shen was now fully feral.

His entire body was suddenly enshrouded bust of sunshine. Jai and Leo both looked at the glowing orb having finally accepted: it was to do or die.

"And I bet," Shen snarled pleasurably with a knowing smile. "...that my life would depend on the morning sun."


	20. History Tells Tales

Is Love Safe?

Chapter Twenty- History Tells Tales

Chen Leigh, Fu, Hao, little Shen, Ming and Shen (c) mine.

* * *

The sun snaked its way through the branches of the forest trees, shining down the small cabin of Tai Lung's house. The house was in silence. On the inside, in the training dojo, Fu, Hao and the rest of the kung fu masters took up rest. They all were sleeping easily, but one creature was having trouble with his dreams. Beneath his cloak, used as a blanket, Po's body twitched and turned. His eyes were clamped shut. And even in the cool air of the room, his body was hot and doused with sweat. He was dreaming.

It was long into the day but everyone was tired. They had been up almost all night and most of the morning sharing stories: Tai Lung's renowned fight with the Dragon Warrior and his tale of how he came to live after the battle, Ming and Tai Lung's past of how they met one another and the surprising news of their wedding and little Shen. The adventure of the residents of the Jade Palace to the Dragon's Pass, even Fu explained of their set out for her husband- though keeping the secret of Shen's name in her eyes. But the one story, above all others that caught the visitors' attention was the tale that Tai Lung told.

Of the Blood Knights.

As the story goes, there was once a creature. Some believed it to be a God of some kind, others thought of it as an animal with powers that would leave its audience stunned with surprise and disbelief. The problem was, however, nobody had every truly seen the creature. No one knew its true form. The tale was that the animal lived in secret among the people, watching over them. For, you see, it was the Creator of life. The first among the animal kind to have walked the world. It was the giver of life. The narrator to everyone's story.

And though no one had ever seen this God, the myths and legend that surrounded it were all the same. It was being, described as a large four-legged animal twice the size of an alpha rhino and with fur as bright as fresh snow. A pair of eyes as full of life, like a young cub, and the unlimited knowledge of the universe. Powerful, striking and glowing like grass covered with dew in the morning gleam. No wise man, soothsayer or fortune-teller could match to its intellect, as they say.

And so, it was in this God, that followers believed that in the past a group of animals was created in its image. A pack, of every creature living. But not born of the ways that the world was today. No.

They were untamed, wild.

They were born feral.

Out the animals were sent by their Creator, all over the world; to live, breed and survive. Some of them went on to learn to use the Earth to their advantage. They made clothes, houses and roads and learnt to read and write. But the others stayed the same, though learning to speak, they retained in their form of living the life of the uncultivated: always on the move, always learning to survive the harshness of nature.

Over time, those who evolved forgot about their undomesticated brothers and sisters. And with it, their feral states faded into the breeze. Gone, but not lost. No creature was known to have ever lost their true side, no matter how many generations had passed. But helpless they were to the evils of greed and lust. Though as the criminals increased, so did the folklore, like the Great wall of China, never ending. With these fairy-tales all of them different but, again, similar, believed that those who lived the feral life protected their cultured brethren. Working in the shadows of the streets like bandits yet keeping a constricting grip on the injustice. And yet, all there was to support such accusations was every night when the moon was at its brightest and fullest, the stars twinkling like diamonds: a shadow could be seen standing in the twilight upon the mountain tops, looking up to the heavens- thinking of their God- before glaring down on the world below. Eyes red with spilt blood of those who would dare to harm the innocent.

As soon as the creatures were seen, they disappeared back into the shadows of the mountains. And so, their name were bestowed, forever more, as Blood Knights.

Po's arms shot out. He scratched at the wooden floor, drawing in his sharp claws in and raking the lumber. His dream was intensifying.

Inside of his mind, the panda was walking through a dense forest in the snow. The air was cold and sharp with ice, the sun peeking out from behind the oncoming sea of grey clouds in the sky. Po's emerald eyes never looked up, only staring forwards as he cautiously brushed aside the jutting branches and twigs in his way. Travelling deeper and deeper into the heart of the woods, the panda took no notice as the sun faded behind the clouds. Setting the forest in a frightening black. Po did not move, his eyes tried to adjust to the abyssal settings but he could make nothing out.

Then a shimmer of white light appeared in front of the frozen panda. Po looked around him at the blackness and moved towards the light. He lifted his large black arm and pushed at the glow, feeling the touch of a shrub as it was moved aside. Po stepped into the opening and gasped once on the other side. Looking around Po found himself in a wide opening, at the base of a stone den. The panda gawked at his surroundings. There was a imposingly carved boulder rising its nose to the sky as it sat atop two small slabs of rocks. The panda walked into the centre of the opening, finally glancing up and spinning around to the fence of trees that surrounded him. There was no sun but a heavy yellow glow shone down upon the poised precipice.

Suddenly a warm feeling crept up from Po's feet, tickling his fur. He looked down to find himself standing by a small stream running through the snow to in front of the boulder where it swirled into a crystal pool. The embankment of the tiny river was lush with green grass and blooming red poppies. Po lowered an eyebrow and bent down, feeling the grass with his paw. No light shone down upon it but it was warm against his paw pad. Freaky. A soft voice, like a spoken breeze caught Po's ears and dragged them to behind him.

"Greetings, Dragon Warrior." Po slowly got up and turned from the ravine. His jade eyes glanced up to the positioned boulder and he became so overwhelm with surprise that the panda thought he was going to faint. Standing, poised on four powerful legs was a wolf. Po gasped at the sight of the creature. It was huge, massive! The lupine wore a brilliant white coat, hiding the built muscles beneath it. The waxen fur shimmered in the light and sparkled as if hiding stars beneath the strands. The creature towered over Po and stared down past its long muzzle with a pair of green eyes that radiated with a gleam of their own. Fierce, salient and filled to the brim with a predatory instinct, but also with a caring touch of love, affection and intelligence. "It is an honour to meet you." It greeted.

Po's jaw went slack and he backed away in fear and astonishment. He then quickly raised up his arms defensively and held a threatening gaze. "Wh-who are you?"

The wolf smiled greatly and laid down on the big rock. Crossing its paws and laying its head atop them. He chuckled from his throat. "Calm yourself, panda. I am not here to harm you. I have no intention to." Po relaxed his shoulders as he stared into the creatures eyes. He saw no danger, no threat. In a way, they reminded the panda of himself. This wolf was a friend. "You know, it was not too long ago that someone else asked me that very same question." The wolf raised his head up and looked on with those majestic eyes. "I told them what I will tell you, I do not know. I have forgotten...well, that's a lie. I haven't forgotten _completely_." He shrugged his shoulders. "I guess being called by so many names does that to you."

"Uhh, huh…?" Po blinked stupidly.

The white wolf hiked a snowy eyebrow. "Aren't you going to ask your next question then?"

Po was confused. "What do you _want_ me ask?"

The wolf's smile never faltered. "The first thing that comes into your head."

The panda blinked again and stepped forward. "You're...a wolf?"

The smile broadened slightly. "There you go." The lupine shook his head. "Yes, I am a wolf, but I am also so much more than that. Again, the same question I was asked by the last person."

"Who is this other person. Do I know them?" The green-eyed wolf bobbed his head slowly. Po thought for a minute. "Is...is it Tai Lung?" The panda's companion just lay there, staring at him, not answering the question. Po assumed he was correct for there was no change in the stoic wolf's muzzle. "It has to be Tai Lung."

The great lupine exhaled through his nose at the end of his long white muzzle and pushed himself to his feet. "Tell me, Dragon Warrior," He began, dipping his head and leaping down to the floor. His paws blended with the snow. Po had to tilt his eyes skyward for his head only came to the animal's furry chest, even as the wolf sat in the snow Po's eyelevel rested on his new found friend's throat. "...do you say the snow leopard's name because of the story he told you?"

Po fiddled with his fingers and shrugged his shoulders as he averted his gaze, somehow feeling embarrassed in the answer he gave. "Well...I guess you can say that. I...I do like a good story. Who doesn't, right?"

The white lupine nodded his head in agreement. "I can acknowledge you there, Po. I love stories, all my life I've listened to them. It really gets your imagination going, doesn't it?"

Po smiled and nodded as well. "Yeah it's...it's..."

"Awesome." They both said.

The two males shared laughter between them. "Oh, Po," Said the sitting wolf. "...I fully understand why you said Tai Lung's name." The chuckles soon died down to silence as only the wolf's gentle voice filled the air. "He has always had the gift of a great story teller. He got that from his father. Both of them. And I know that both are proud." Po moved his jaw about in uncertainty of the lupine's words but remained silent none the less. The wolf went on in a sort of dreaming daze. "And such things that snow leopard has to be proud of. He is a master of kung fu- though no title need be entrusted to him. True, that his past experiences in life have lead him down the wrong path, though only lead astray. But look at where it has lead him. You know of his wife, Ming. A beautiful woman whom he loves not for of her eyes or her looks but for the soul that resides from within. And now, he has both her and a loving son growing up in his footstep- the good side, that is." The wolf raised up a bulky paw and lazily prodded it at Po. "And it is because of you, Dragon Warrior, that such things have come to past." Po's quickly filled with fault and grief as he glanced to the floor intensely. The wolf caught sight of Po's expression and shook his head disappointingly. "Oh, come now, Po." He said, dropping his paw. Po looked up with dancing eyes, still holding the self-blaming gaze. "Don't think that you beating him in a fight at the Valley of Peace was a bad thing. Had it not been for you to stop Tai Lung he would have never figured out the scroll was blank. Had he not gazed upon the blank parchment he would never have learned that there is more to life that a piece of paper. He learned that there is love in the world. You did a good thing by letting him go. He was given another chance, he found a family. You should be happy for him."

Po looked away for a second. "Yeah I guess so." He then faced the wolf again. "But why do I still feel guilty?"

"It's because you are still holding out on the truth. For an entire year you held back telling your friends about your constant contact with Tai Lung, and now they know. But it is not the snow leopard I'm talking about. Your emotional blame is on another soul."

Po's eyebrows dropped and he turned around, staring deep into the circular pool of water at the base of the stone den. "Shen..." He whispered.

The large white wolf got up and padded up to the panda's side. His head curled around Po's side and stared at him with a supporting gaze. He sat down beside the pool. "Yes, Po. You are right. It is Shen who you have not told anyone about. You, and Tigress, are the only ones who know of his real identity. I know that you have told Tai Lung about this- and he's more likely told Ming- but other than that no one knows. Shifu and the rest of the Five are left in the mist." Po's eye darkened in remorse and shame as he subconsciously reached across and felt his paw pads brush across the three scars running up from his wrist to his elbow. The panda shivered as he felt the healing skin beneath the black fur. The wolf lowered his head and dipped his eyebrows, spotting the claw marks. He drew his ears back slightly and looked into the water. "They have a right to know, Po. One way or another, Shifu is going to discover the truth. And very soon. When the times comes you're going to need to support not only Shen but your master as well."

Po stayed silent but nodded in understanding. He knew the wolf to be right. For one reason or another he could not find the will to argue or even bother trying. He just knew the lupine was correct. "Yeah." He sighed. "That's gonna be a tough call." Po looked to his friend with a little smile. "I bet Shifu will have fun kicking my butt down those stares again."

The wolf's white ears came up and the pair shared a hearty chuckle again. "Maybe." The lupine grinned. "Ah, Po," The wolf said congenially, his tail thumping against the floor with delight. "It warms my heart to see you how you are now. You've never changed. Not one bit. Even as a cub you were, well, just as you are now." The wolf's green eyes glistened as he went on, a knowing truth in them. "Mr Ping had raised you well. Though a bit overprotective and noodle-crazed he was always supportive. And then with you becoming a kung fu master- the Dragon Warrior." The wolf whistled lowly. "Whoa, what a step! It makes a father feel nothing but pride for his son when they achieve something as great as that. The same can be said for a mother, too." The glint in his gaze vanished. "But how can I forget Master Tigress, a beauty I must say. You must feel grateful."

Po felt his cheeks flush red with embarrassment. "Yeah." He said dreamily. "I really am."

The wolf tipped his head to the side in question and raised both his eyebrows. "Still not proposed to her yet?"

Po 's posture fell in defeat. "No. But I want to so much! I love her!" He growled scornfully in his throat his reflection in the water. "Why am I such a coward? I mean, am I not meant to marry Tigress? Are we, like, not meant to be together? Is it fate or just me that's keeping us from getting married?"

The large wolf propped his head upright and lowered his ears a little, shaking his head. "No, Dragon Warrior, it is not fate that you haven't proposed to Tigress. It's just not the right time. You have been waiting for over a year, half of which was just spent thinking about it day and night. Buying the ring. Both of these things you've done, Po, you just have to be patient. The time will come, and I believe it to be quite soon."

"But when? When?" The panda pleaded at the green-eyed lupine.

The white wolf dipped his head in sorrow. His ears were fully flat against his skull. "I'm afraid it's not my place to say, Po. I'm sorry." There was a moment of silence, the running of the water in the stream being the only sound that filled the air. Po's eyes had gained attention in the ground this time, deep in thought. The wolf was just the same, glancing every so often up at the distraught panda. His large paws padded the ground in uncertainty. He sighed eventually. "Po," The panda looked up from the grassy floor to him. "...the reason why I am here is not to talk about you or your relationship with Tigress."

The panda's eyebrow hiked up in curiosity. "But...if it's not me you want to talk about, then who?"

The white wolf looked down again. "I cannot say: it goes against who I am. I am bound by laws and rules." His ears came up and a look of certainty and knowledge appeared in his green eyes. He stared straight into the panda's orbs. "And, though these rules cannot be broken, they can be bent."

Po probed his new found friend questioningly with his emerald orbs.

"I must warn you, Po, there is a great battle coming up: a battle that you will play a part in. The enemy you are destined to face will be tougher than any other adversary you've fought before." The wolf pawed the floor again, but this time with apprehension. "This fight will not be an easy one, you cannot let it go by chance. If you ever wish to come out of it victorious you must learn to give into your hatred, anger and fury. You have to give yourself over to your darker side, only then can you do true good. You must become truly feral."

Po snapped fully towards the wolf, his monochromatic face twisted in anger. He snarled deeply. "No! I made a promise to myself to that I would not let myself become like that ever again. I risked too much for my friends. I almost lost Tigress because of it!" Pools of tears began to swell in the panda's green eyes.

The wolf's muzzle grinned sympathetically as he lifted a bulky paw up and placed it gently on Po's forehead. Po seemed to relax suddenly, his body loosened and he uncurled his fists. His whole body went slack and collapsed on the embankment beside the river. "You must calm yourself, Dragon Warrior." The wolf warned softly, getting up onto his paws and gradually circling around the limp panda. "I can understand as to why you fear reverting to such ways. Yes, you did almost lose the love of your life, but she survived. She pushed you on to battle Chen Leigh and win the fight, had she not been injured I don't believe you would have defeated him. Nothing is stronger than love, Dragon Warrior. Nor is nothing more deadly."

Po grit his teeth together and flicked his eyes up to the lupine's face every time he passed in front of him. "What have you done to me?" He demanded.

"I needed you to calm down, Po. I needed you to listen to my words." The wolf stopped by Po's head and laid himself down to the grass floor. He crossed his paws leisurely, taking in a deep breath before continuing on. "You must understand, Dragon Warrior, as I have said before: there are rules that I must follow, laws that I am bound to live by."

"But what does that have to do with me!" Po bellowed. "What does any of this have to do with me. I just want to live my life."

"And you will!" The wolf replied sharply in the form of a snarl. He was on his feet instantly, leaning his muzzle so close to Po the panda could feel his warm breath and see the glistening whites of his teeth. The panda clamped his mouth shut at the echoing boom and audacity of the wolf's voice. He felt a sudden fear that the wolf would tear his throat apart. "You will live your life, but not if you fail to win the upcoming battle! There is more to this that you do not understand. Much more is at risk that of your life, your friends or family's! If you fail there will be chaos of the upmost scale. Your kung fu will be like a cub's imagination, lost in history. Your life will be unbearable, filled with death, loss and pain! The same for the ones you love and hold so close to your heart! Are you really about to let that go just for your own sake?" The wolf backed away and Po breathed a sigh of relief. The great lupine's fur settled and his lips dropped back over his portentous fangs. His voice faded back into its calm demeanour, with a twang of disappointment in his tone. "All your life, Po, you have given up things for others. You even put your own life in danger to protect the innocent! Don't let things that once were prevent you from grasping the future. Think of Tigress, if you won't do it for me then do it for her!"

"But what if I can't win?" Po asked worriedly. "What if I face this guy...or girl..."

"Guy." The wolf corrected.

"...guy," Po repeated rightly. "...and I lose?"

The wolf shook his head. "For once, panda, it is not your destiny to face this opponent. You must only help the person who is truly tied to face him. But the creatures that support your enemy are beyond your control, they are not ordinary like normal people. They are stronger, faster and harder to beat. You must learn to let go of your fear. You have to become feral. And, I believe," The wolf touched Po in the centre of the forehead with his great paw again. The panda felt his senses coming back, he could move his muscles. Po sat upright and looked down to his paws before staring up at the sitting lupine. "...that in time you will."

Po eyed the lupine sceptically. "How can you be so sure of all this?"

The wolf's signature smile returned and he got up, walking towards Po. The panda got to his feet and backed up, stopping once he felt the cold water of the pool lap at his ankles. "That is a secret, Dragon Warrior. One that you are not yet ready to understand. In time you shall, but not for a while. Remember, Po, you will fight not this battle alone. You will have your family and friends at your side. Trust in them, Po. Trust in your friends and you will win." The green-eyed lupine backed up and lifted his tail. His smile held a secretive coy smirk in it. "Oh, and one more thing. When you meet up with your old friend, don't be afraid of him or his new companions. They are vital to both him and you. Welcome them as friends and you shall see the power they hold. I have said to much already, there is nothing more I can say." His ears lifted and his tail wagged contently. "I am sorry, Dragon Warrior."

Po eyebrows dipped. "For what?" The panda was, at first, wondering why as he saw the wolf draw so low to the ground, but catching the twinkle in his brilliant green eyes Po waved his paws defiantly. "Whoa, Whoa, wait! What are you-Argh!" The wolf barked playfully, like a little pup, as he pounced through the air and onto Po. The panda was pushed back into as he felt the white wolf's large paws on his chest. Po lost his balance and fell back into the pond. The water rushed over the panda and swallowed him whole as he was dragged down into the darkening depths. His lungs screamed for air but all that escaped him were gurgles of rising bubbles. And as the shadows snaked their way around his body, Po's jade eyes stared up through the surface of the water at the face o the great white, green-eyed wolf.

Po then jolted upright and sharply gasped.

For a few seconds the panda could not recognise the room of which he was in, but after blinking a few times and scanning the walls and sleeping forms of his friends Po settled with a sigh. The panda slumped his shoulders forward and hunched his back as he raw a sweaty paw over his furry head. The sun glistened of his black and white fur, capturing the reflection of the sweat droplets stuck between the strands. The panda heaved profoundly to find himself in his bed, in Tai Lung's training dojo. The settling panda leaned back with his arms propping him up as he stared around the room. The touch of the cold floorboards cooled his paws and relaxed the panda further. In the shades of the room Po caught sight of Crane standing on one leg with his beak tucked beneath a wing, Monkey and Mantis lightly snoring next to the avian with Viper curled up like a spring beside them. Master Shifu's small frame could be seen from under the cover of his cloak, used as a blanket, by Po's lit up eyes. Quite unusual for the red panda to still be asleep, he must have really been tired. A small distance away, by the window Fu laid on her side, holding the young cub, Hao, close to her bosom. Both their tails twitched on the floor. No doubt that they were dreaming of Shen. Po smirked a little at the sight of them both.

But his grin turned into a fully fledged smile as he laid eyes on the sleeping form of his female lover lying at his side. Tigress lay beneath her cloak, her head propped up by her arms. She purred delightedly, smiling all the while as she snuggled closer to Po's frame for warmth. Her tail gently swayed back and forth, as if stroking the floor. Po exhaled happily as he leaned on one arm and used the other to brush the slumbering striped feline's cheek. She stirred a little but did not wake. Po's growing fur quivered in pleasure as he felt a surge of energy run from Tigress' cheek, through his paw, up his arm and into his heart. It skipped a beat. Deciding to leave his friends and lover get their sleep Po leaned down and kissed the feline on her forehead. "Sweet dreams, Tigress." He whispered.

With practised silence the panda placed his cloak over Tigress, giving her the extra warmth before picking up his red waistcoat and walking stick. He quietly tiptoed over to the door, sliding it open a slit and sliding out of the dojo, closing the door behind him. It was only once he was out of the temporary sleeping room that Po felt the sweat on his body and the heat radiating from his body. It was because of his dream. Po suffered the humidity of his own body, he needed some fresh air. Without waking the rest of the residents of the house, Po donned his waistcoat and grasped his walking staff before heading to the front door. He stepped out onto the porch and into the new day. The sun fell upon his fur and felt cooling in the breezy air, the grass on the forest floor was fresh with morning dew; each one sparkling like diamonds. The leaves, both dead and new, fluttered in the low winds in a spectacle dance of majestic grace. Po looked at the woods before him and sighed through his nose with delight.

Then something caught his gaze.

The panda squinted his eyes past the trees and branches to what seemed to be a figure moving slowly in a bask of sunlight. Po gripped his staff a little tightly as he stepped down from the porch of Tai Lung's house and moved towards the form. The leaves and fallen twigs crunched beneath his feet. It was only as he drew near that Po began to make out the features of the animal in the curtain of fluttering leaves and blinding sunlight.

The long spotted tail and coat, broad shoulders and pony-tail reassured the panda. It was Tai Lung.

Halting a few paces away in the shade of the trees, Po watched on as the clouded leopard moved his arms about him in a unhurried but professional manner. His legs swept across the floor and balanced his hefty build of a body with ease beneath the morning glow. He changed from position to position, pausing for a few seconds between each one before moving once more to another pose. Po's eyes glinted as he recognised the form of meditative martial arts anywhere.

Tai Chi.

Standing a small distance away, staring with fervent eyes on the feline's elegant dance, Po watched on as Tai Lung remained with his legs spread wide, knees bent and the arms outstretched to either side. His head faced to the right with his eyes closed. Never before had Po seen his ex-enemy so peaceful. He was brought out of his secret observation when he heard the feline's voice speak. "Can't sleep?"

Po blinked his eyes, a bit surprised that he could be heard though he had made no sound to indicate his presence to the snow leopard. "I'm sorry." He apologized.

Tai Lung remained as he was. "Don't be, I like a bit of company." He said simply, finishing his dance by bringing his feet together and raising his paws together over his head before slowly drawing them down past his fact to the centre of his chest. He took a long inhale through his nose and exhaled through his mouth. His ear flicked in Po's direction. "Care to join me?" He asked.

Po rubbed the back of his head. "Uhh...I don't know how to do Tai Chi. I've just read about it and seen others do it. I don't think I'll be any good."

Tai Lung chuckled through his throat, but it was heartfelt. "No matter, just stand next to me and do as I do. All the time just slowly breathe in through your nose and out through your mouth. It's quite easy."

"Well...I guess I could give it a try." The panda suggested as he laid his staff against the nearest tree and joined his friend in the sunlight, standing off to Tai Lung's right side. "So I just follow you?"

The feline bobbed is head. "Just go with the flow. Don't rush it."

"Okay," Po said timidly. "...when you're ready, Tai."

And so the two kung fu masters began their majestic movements of Tai Chi. Whenever Tai Lung changed his body to one position, he would always wait for Po to catch up and adjust himself before the snow leopard moved onto the next. The panda never took his eyes off of the feline as he mimicked Tai Lung's body poses, their legs gently sweeping the floor of the leaves and their arms limp yet hung precisely in the air. Their breathing as one. Together they almost seemed in sync.

"Tai Lung?" Po soon called.

"Hmmm?" Was the reply.

"I've been meaning to ask you..."Po began.

"Go on." Tai Lung encouraged gently.

The panda bit his lip as he though to what to say, wondering if he should tell the feline about his dream and encounter with the white wolf. Po thought it best to keep the topic to himself. Instead, he asked. "...you remember the story you told us last night? The one from the scrolls?"

"Yes, about the feral God."

Po hesitated again. "Do you think it's possible, that...that there really is another kind of life out there? That we really are born from wild animals?"

"Well, if you ask me, Po, I believe it to be true." Po silently stared at his cohort. Tai Lung noticed his companion's quietness and continued on. "Think about it, Po, I got the story from one of the Thousand Scrolls of Kung Fu. They were written by Master Oogway on his travels, he lived to be a thousand years old. So that's a scroll for every year, on average. I don't think Shen or Shifu ever got the chance to come across it, but I believe there is a strong possibility that what the story is based on is true. Remember, Po, nothing is impossible." Tai Lung said, reciting the words of the passed on tortoise. He hesitated and looked over his shoulder, opening his brilliant yellow eyes for the first time. He stared directly at Po. "From your own experience, Po, with what you've told me in your letters, I would have thought you'd agree with the scroll. You said it yourself that you've had flashing memories and nightmares about the fight with Chen Leigh. With you having become feral in the past, it only supports the story."

Both kung fu masters halted in their dance. Tai Lung glimpsed intensely at Po, he saw the shadows of guilt and sadness fill in the panda's emerald orbs. The thing was, Po _did_ feel accountable for his dream, endangering his friends, family and Tigress: the pictures of her neck filled with holes from Chen Leigh's bloodthirsty teeth making him shudder. The bursts of images from when he was feral exploded inside of Po's mind before fading back into darkness. Po's pose sunk heavily. Tai Lung saw his friend's pained expression and thought it best to end, mentally cursing himself for going too far. "We're finished here." He said, standing erect and bringing his paws above his head then down past his face.

Po could not bring himself to finish off like Tai Lung. A intense weight built up in his stomach as it knotted tightly. Walking out of the sunlight and back to the tree where his walking staff leaned in the shade, Po let the gravity of his body take over as he dropped to the floor with a thud. He leaned back up against the bark of the tree and rested his head against its wooden surface with a sigh.

Tai lung stayed in the light patch as he gradually worked on stretching out his aching muscles. The bones in his body cracked and snapped like popcorn. He relaxed with a justified moan and turned to the sitting panda. He took the spot next to Po, bringing his knees up to his chest. "What's wrong?" He asked.

Po sighed greatly and hung his head forward. "Tai, do you mind if I ask you a personal question?"

The feline shook his head. "Not at all."

"Okay," Po began as he looked into the feline's yellow eyes. "...how did you get Ming to marry you? I don't mean...like... how did you force her...but... how did you build up the courage to propose?"

Although he had accepted to answer the question, Tai Lung never expected such a enquiry. He started to fiddle with the gold wedding ring on his claw, twisting it between his fingers and thumb over and over again. His ears dropped slightly and he looked at the ground, sighing sincerely. "I can't lie to you, Po, I may be a kung fu master; I may be strong, fast, muscularly toned and able scare my adversaries away with one glare of my eyes, but when it came to Ming and proposing to her...I...I never felt so petrified in my entire life." The snow leopard lifted his head and faced the panda; Po looked straight back at him. "I had done dangerous things that had put my life in danger, fighting off armies single handed, battling enemies with my last breath and yet there I was, a tough martial arts fighter, frightened to propose to the woman he loves. I had thought about a few weeks after we had met and she had moved in to live with me." Tai Lung's lips stretched into a smile filled with pride and bliss. "It was only when Shen was conceived and Ming told me that she was pregnant that I ran to the nearest market, found and bought the best rings I could buy, ran back home and pushed my fears aside, asking her outright. I thought: if she did not want me as a husband, then maybe she would have me as a partner or a close friend." He lifted his paw into the sky. The sunlight broke through one of the branches and caught the ring, it glistened brightly. "But as you can see, she said yes. I had never felt such happiness. Not even when I was with Shifu and Oogway back at the Jade Palace did I ever feel such content and peace. It was on that day that I finally learned to let go of my anger and grew to finally live the life of a normal person. I still have my job with the local farmer and earn what is needed to survive, and I now also have a wife and son. What more could a guy ask for?"

"Whoa..." Po gasped with a gaping mouth, astounded by the feline's genuine tale to his question. "I...I never knew. You didn't tell me about that in your letters."

Tai Lung hiked an eyebrow to the panda. "It is a very personal subject, Dragon Warrior."

Po grinned sheepishly and rubbed his neck in embarrassment. "Oh, yeah, I guess you're right."

Tai Lung nudged soon him in the arm. "Well, come on, let's see it."

"Let's see what?"

Tai Lung rolled his yellow eyes. "Why, the ring, of course. You think I don't know what's going on between you and Tigress? Yeah, right! Come on; let's see what you're going to propose the great Master Tigress with." He held out his paw. Reluctantly Po reached into his waistcoat pocket and produced the small box. He held it over Tai Lung's paw and hesitated, if just for a second, before putting the casing in the snow leopard's grip. Tai Lung pushed open the box, his eyes grew and he let out a low whistle. "Whoa, that's one stunning ring you have here, Po."

Po blushed shyly. "You...you really think so."

"Po," Tai Lung replied honestly. "...if I think this ring is beautiful, then Tigress will lose her breath over it." He closed the box and handed it back to the panda. Po took it and placed the box in his breast pocket. "She's one lucky woman, to have a guy like you."

Po gave his signature, little-lost boy smile. "The same could be said for you and Ming." He placed the box back inside his coat pocket.

Tai Lung rose up a finger. "Touché."

A moment of silence befell the two males as they sat down in the gleaming sunlight, both of them staring up through the trees, branches and leaves to the clear blue sky and the still apparent white crescent moon. And, though they did not say it aloud, both Tai Lung and Po wished for a safe return of Jing Shen. It was after a shot while that Tai Lung's ears perked forward and he got to his feet. Po saw the concentrated look on the feline's face. "What is it?"

Tai Lung rose up a paw, asking for silence as he leaned into the direction which his ears pointed. He then gasped. "No...it can't be."

Po got to his feet, grasping his staff and holding it readily in his paws. "What is it?" Po asked quickly.

Tai Lung faced Po, a mixture of fear and eagerness in his eyes. "It's Shen! He's here!"


	21. The Glorified Reunion

Is Love Safe?

Chapter Twenty One- The Glorified Reunion

Ming, Little Shen, Fu, Hao, Hei Xin, Jai, Leo and Shen (c) mine.

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Shen smiled delightedly as he leapt up into the air, flipping over his enemy as he grabbed hold of the attacking creature's shirt collar. With his feet placed firmly back on the ground, Shen pulled effortlessly with his arms against the animals' fabric. The creature convulsed as it choked against the tugging of the shirt collar against its throat. The animal was lifted entirely off the ground and pulled backwards over Shen's shoulders, thrown through the air in a vertical spin before plastering into a nearby pine tree. The creature groaned and fluttered its eyes open in time to see Shen flip its dropped weapon- a gruesome-looking axe- up from the ground and into his paw and throw it with an underarm twist in its direction. The creature screamed before being silenced as the blade of the weapon lodged itself in its body, pinning it to the tree. The attacker's head bobbed forward, a line of red drool falling from its lips.

Shen did not have the time to relish in new found strength and agility from him becoming fully feral. His ears twitched either way atop his head to the sound of two oncoming assailants. Shen hesitated till they were close enough; so close he could see the fury in their eyes. He leapt into the air. The two bodies below connected in a tangle of arms and legs. During his mid-flight jump, Shen reached into the depths of his cloak and felt the cold touch of Jai's throwing knives. Picking out one in each paw, he removed them from the sheaths on his belt and spread his arms wide, blades pointed down. Falling back to Earth Shen plunged the two knives deep into the backs of the creatures. They yowled in pain and collapsed beneath Shen's weight.

Yanking the knives free, Shen's red eyes snapped up as he gazed over to his sister.

Jai moved with precision and grace that Shen had never seen before. Her actions were fierce and strong, like Tigress, but with the fluent twirls and durability of Viper and Crane combined. Shen was marvelled, almost, by her attacks. The lioness held the handle of her dragon's carved sword tightly within her paws, swinging it with potency as it cut through the oncoming wave of creatures as they materialised from the shadows of the forest. The long bade sung a high tune as it tasted the blood of its fallen victims. Shen caught a glimpse and, if just for a second, believed Jai was enjoying all of this. Quite frankly Shen, too, felt the same way. It almost was like a game to them.

Casting a glance to the right, the feline saw as Leo took on a wolf. Both lupines moved in a writhing mass of grey and white fur. With gawking orbs, Shen looked on as Leo rolled with his enemy, using the momentum of their tumble to put himself on top. Without hesitating the white-masked Pure One opened his large maw and flashed his glistening fangs before sinking his head down upon the pinned wolf. The animal's body arched and a piercing howl escaped from its throat as Leo bit down terribly on its neck. Taking a firm hold with his teeth, Leo stood poised on all fours as he lifted his muzzle with the still-alive wolf in his bite, dragging it across the ground as if sweeping the forest floor clean of its litter of dropped leaves and broken twigs. With a great swing Leo pulled the creature off the floor and let go with his maw. The wolf was thrown from through the air, a trail of blood spurting from its throat following as it crashed into the bodies of the attackers who were fighting Jai.

Shen saw the opportunity at hand. "Quick!" He bellowed, catching Leo and Jai's attention. "Follow me; I know a place where we can be safe!" He motioned to his sister and the wolf to follow, sheathing the throwing knives back onto his belt. "Come on!" There was a sudden chorus of snarls and growling from behind the trio. All three of them looked back to see a flurry of burning eyes travelling in their direction. Shadows moved in and out of the morning light rays that filtered through the branches of the forest trees. Those who had been knocked down by the now-dead wolf, which had been tossed by Leo, were starting to back onto their feet.

Jai was hesitant to chase on as she glared at the oncoming attackers, lusting for more blood but was pushed to do as her brother said when Leo pulled on her arm. "Go!" Leo shouted through bloody fangs and crimson dripping lips. The lioness turned away from the oncoming wave and looked to Shen as the black feline spun on his heels and bolted past the erect trees.

For a good five minutes Jai and Leo ran in the wake of Shen's footsteps, their movements swift and their steps so light that no leaf or twig crunched beneath their feet. Sharp turns left and right they ran deeper into the depths of the forest. Leo gave a few glances back every now and then to see the flood of burning eyes trailing behind them. These guys were fast. "Go! Go!" The white-masked lupine barked.

"This way!" Shen shouted as he made a sharp left turn, skidding across the soil and running around a tree. As Jai and Leo followed, they both stopped when they saw Shen standing in a ray of light, staring at a panda with a staff in hand and a snow leopard. "Po!" Shen acknowledged as he ogled the panda. "Tai Lung!" He said, looking at the snow leopard.

"Shen!" Both men shouted back with joy. But then the smiles left their lips as they noticed the change in colour in the black feline's orbs. "Hey Shen...what's wrong with your eyes?" Po asked with hiked eyebrows.

Jai and Leo twisted their heads over their shoulders as they heard the sound of their pursuers draw near. The gang of bandits rounded the corner, spotting their targets. "No time for reunions!" Jai cried as she and Leo bolted past Shen, Po and Tai Lung. Shen glanced back and saw the creatures upon them. Their eyes burned intensely at him, teeth bared, throats and lips rippling with a wild fury for bloodlust. They paused for a few seconds and stared at Jai and the group of males.

Po's monochromatic fur stood on end like a frightened cat as his green eyes gawked at the snarling mass of animals glaring right at him: cheetahs, wolves, leopards, tigers and a few boars. Tai Lung was just the same. Neither of them had ever seen such creatures with irrepressible predatory behaviour. It chilled them to the bone, frozen by the fear of what they had just seen, though they did not get to stare for long as Shen grabbed hold of their shoulders and pushed them away from the animals. "Run! Get back to the house!"

Tai Lung and Po needed no encouragement as they spun for the cabin, running after Jai and Leo. Shen paused before going after his friends and sister. Spinning around on the spot, he reached into his cloak and took hold of a multitude of knives between his claws. With rapid and lightning-fast reflexes he threw them in the direction of the creatures. Although a few of them fell, those smart enough to jump aside charged for Shen. The black feline twisted on his heels and ran towards the cabin, up the stairs of the porch and into Tai Lung's house. He slammed the door behind him.

Shen moved away from the wooden access and marched up to Tai Lung. "Get Fu and Hao into your room. Stay there and guard them with your life." Shen snapped his head to Po. "Get the Furious Five awake! Now!"

There was an explosion from behind: fragments of wood and splinters flew through the air. The gang shielded their eyes.

Jai lowered her arm and saw a figure- resembling a tiger- barge into the house and hurtle straight for her brother. "Shen! Look out!" It was a useless attempt. By the time Shen looked around to preparing himself, the striped feline had connected its body with his own. The two felines were sent through the rice paper door leading into the training dojo.

The swarm of bandits dove in through the windows and broken front door. Jai moved to help her brother but was intervened as a leopard swiped at her face with its claws. A wolf bolted for Po, sending the panda and lupine into the kitchen and out of sight. Jai finished off her leopard adversary and stepped forward, dropping low as she cut the sword through the air, slicing into the torso of a wolf. The animal dropped to the floor instantly. She got to her feet and thrust the long blade of the sword upwards, cutting a cheetah from the bottom of his waist up to his forehead in the form of a neat red line. Leo took his chance and barked as he leapt onto the charging mass, taking hold of one of them by the tail in one paw and pulling the creature back as he snatched a boar by the throat. He squeezed his paw and snapped the hog's spine, throwing the limp body into another boar, piercing it with the tusks of its already-dead brethren.

Tai Lung paused in the moment of the fight. He wanted so desperately to help the wolf and lioness but remembered what Shen had said before being sent into the dojo. Tai Lung looked to the kitchen where Po had vanished with a wolf on his body. There were sounds of battle cries and growling coming from inside the room but still no sight of the panda or the wolf. The kung fu master took one last glance to the Lei and Jai, seeing how they were managing to hold off most of the creatures. They didn't need his help. Deciding to obey Shen, Tai Lung lit into the dojo.

When Shen had been tackled by the striped feline in a surprise attack, the both of them crashed through the doorway of the dojo and tumbled across the floor in a fit of snapping jaws and swiping claws. Fu, Hao and the kung fu masters had all been stirred by the sound of the front door being sent off its hinges in a splatter of wood. But were fully brought out of their half-wake dazes when Shen and the tiger came rolling through the entrance. Everyone, literally, jumped out of their beds and backed up against the walls of the dojo, staring down with shock and astonishment to the two felines battling for their lives on the floor in the centre of the room. Monkey had jumped up onto the beams on the ceiling due to the sudden fright. Mantis and viper had pretty much done the same thing, along with Shifu. All eyes then snapped from the duelling felines to Tai Lung as he jumped through the torn paper door, making his way over Shen and the tiger, straight for Fu and Hao. The lynx and hybrid pushed themselves as far as they could up against the wall. Tai Lung stood between them and Shen.

"Come with me!" He snarled. Reaching down and taking Hao in his arms, pulling Fu by her arm. The three felines moved around Shen and the tiger. Once out of the dojo, Tai Lung ran with the lynx and her son into his room, where Ming was looking blankly from underneath the covers of her bed, confused by all the noises that her heightened ears caught. Tai Lung slid the door open and wretched it shut once he was sure Fu was inside. Little Shen lay in a crib right beside the blind female snow leopard's side of the bed, the sounds of whimpering began to escape from him as he awoke to the sounds of the battle next door.

"What's going on?" Ming spoke, the panic and alarm in her voice.

"We're under attack!" Tai Lung replied as he dropped Hao to the floor in the corner furthest from the door. Letting go of Fu, the lynx knelt to hold her cub close as she looked frantically between Tai Lung and the door of the bedroom. Tai Lung ran over to his wife and swiftly picked her off the bed, placing her beside Fu and Hao before running to collect his cub and placing him in Ming's arms. He quickly cupped his wife's cheek and kissed her. "Stay here and be quiet. I'll protect you."

Shifu and the rest of the Furious Five all watched as Shen and the tiger rolled about on the floorboards like cubs, the only thing different being that they were trying to kill each other. Shen managed to grab hold of the striped feline by the hem of its shirt, rolling onto his feet he pulled with his arms. Seeing that Tigress was in the way, he called. "Excuse me!" Tigress moved aside. And in one clean movement, Shen yanked the snarling tiger off the floor, swinging it in an arc through the air and slamming it into the wall, upside-down. The striped feline groaned as it lay plastered up against the wall of the dojo. Shen wasted no time as he spotted the body of his old sword. With a flick of his foot, Shen launched the sheathed sword into the air, grabbed the handle and pulled the blade free before thrusting it through the stomach of the tiger. The weapon went right through the body and wall with ease. The tiger screamed in pain before Shen wrenched the sword free and silenced the creature for good with a spin, slicing it across the chest.

The corpse tumbled to the matted floor, a pool of red blood forming around its upper body. Shen panted heavily as he stared down on the dead body, gripping the hilt of his sword in a constricting grip. After a few seconds, Shen raised his eyes up to Tigress. The kung fu master stepped back a bit as she saw Shen's glowing bloody orbs glance at her. She felt a cold chill run down her back to the base of her tail. She watched as Shen looked around the room to the various colours of eyes of the kung fu masters that stared down upon him, seeing the flames burning within his red orbs. Shifu peeked from over the beam and perked his ears upright in recognition. "Shan Yi?"

Shen couldn't help but give a little smile; Shifu still believed he was Shan Yi, the Black Panther who held them cure Po from over a year ago. It warmed his heart a little, but was short lived as he snapped his head to the torn doorway. A small pack of wolves leapt into the room. "Here!" Shen tossed the sword t Tigress who instinctively caught its handle. "Introductions later." He managed to say before reaching for move knives, producing two held downside and lighting into the on-comers. Tigress regained her composure and joined Shen as a fierce scrap filled the room. Shifu, now filled with the energy from the unexpected wakeup call and seeing the feline once more, swung himself round the rafter and pushed with his feet against the bottom, soaring through the air and landing a powerful kick into the face of one of the lupines. The rest of Furious Five were quick to join the clash.

Back inside of Tai Lung's room, the group of felines huddled close, clinging to each other desperately as Tai Lung stood over them. His heart raced profoundly, beating against his toned chest, as he listened to the violent sounds of the brawl occurring just beyond the paper door which his eyes never left for a second.

Suddenly, the frame was kicked in as another leopard pounced into the room. The animal's eyes scanned the room from left to right, landing on the group huddle in the corner of the room. Tai Lung had moved into action as soon as the leopard entered the room, rolling across the floor and sweeping the creature's legs out from beneath it. Once on the floor, Tai Lung moved himself on top of the feline and brought down a strong fist onto his enemy's cheek. The leopard's head cracked from side to side as Tai Lung rained down a flurry of punches to the feline's face with purpose and determination. The leopard growled as it managed to get its leg between them and push forcefully against Tai Lung's muscled frame, sending the clouded leopard up and into the ceiling. Tai Lung yelped in pain as his back hit the beams, breaking the thick plank of wood. The feline below rolled aside as Tai Lung's body came crashing down, landing on the floor with a bounce and a whispering groan. The assailant used the moment to get onto Tai Lung's back and take a firm hold of his pony tail. The leopard yanked Tai Lung's head up, the dazed clouded feline only moaned with dizziness. The straddling leopard lifted its paw into the air and unsheathed five menacing black claws. Lowering its paw down across Tai Lung's neck, the feline readied for the blood to spurt from the snow leopard's throat.

It was then the feline was tackled by Hao's small form. "Leave him alone!" The hybrid cub screeched as he pushed against the larger feline with his small paws.

Fu pulled away from Ming and moved after her son but was halted by the blind snow leopard's paw on the hem of her vest. "Hao! Let me go! Hao!" She shrieked, reaching out a paw to the door.

Done without the slightest of thought to the risk and immediate danger he had put himself in, Hao flew through the door of Tai Lung's room and into the main area of the cabin with the leopard. The two felines crashed into the table positioned in the centre of the room. Hao was flung from the creature and onto the surface of the table. The hybrid groaned and clutched his head, a headache starting to brew. There was a snarling sound coming from above his head. Hao's multicoloured eyes looked up to see the upside down face of the bandit's muzzle rise from over the table edge. Hao gawked as the creature brought up its unsheathed claws and sliced down through the air towards him. Hao instinctively rolled off the table and onto the floor, scurrying beneath the wooden furniture and kicking the chair where the feline stood out so it smacked into its stomach. The leopard doubled over with a puff of air knocked from its lung, but snarled in its throat as it jerked the chair aside and bent down, reaching past the legs of the table for Hao. The cub scurried away in fear but the feline lifting the table up and crawling across the floor for him. Hao soon found himself blocked by the other chair at the other end of the table, his back pressing up against wooden legs as the leopard's claw came within reach. Hao curled up his knees and felt tears in his eyes as he cried out in terror. The leopard sneered with a smile as it stretched out its arm towards the cub, its paw ready to grab hold of him.

The feline, then, howled in sudden pain. Its eyes widened. Hao witnessed as the leopard slid across the floor and was pulled out from under the table. Its claws scraped into the wooden flooring but proved without success. As the leopard was pulled out from under the table, it looked to find Leo's muzzle glaring up through his white masked; red eyes blazing with fury and hatred behind it. The leopard drew back its ears and hissed at Leo. The Pure One ignored his adversary's threat and released his jaw on the feline's foot to jump onto the leopard and snap his muzzle at its neck. The leopard was defenceless on its back, swiping its razor claws at Leo's face maliciously with endless mercy to prevent Leo from getting a good assault.

For a small moment, the entire cabin was sent into a deafening silence as an echoing noise of what sounded like a gong being struck rung through the air. Those in the training dojo stopped their fighting and all peered through the torn paper door. Jai halted her actions, the tip of her blade pointed at the chest of a cheetah. On the floor, Leo and the leopard paused and turned to look at the doorway of the kitchen. From underneath the table, Hao's coloured orbs peeked between the legs of the chairs. The sound came again and again, following with the whines of a dog. Silence once more filled the cabin. At that time, the wall connected the kitchen burst open as a body soared through the air and knocked into the table, toppling it and the candles atop. Hao squealed anxiously, covering his eyes as his hiding place was revealed. He looked through his claws as everyone looked to the body on the floor of a dead wolf. They all, then, glanced to the hole in the wall as Po's massive figure stepped through. In each of his paws, he held a handle connected to a wok. The panda's eyes were shining brightly and he smirked coyly. "Order up." He said with a smile. For a good moment of stunned silence, everyone gazed at the panda, but the silence of his audience was broken as a tiger- who was stupid enough- charged. Po dipped his eyebrows and broadened his grin as he gave a cry of battle and spun. The first wok smacked into the feline's cheek with a low song emitting from the vibrating metal. The second one knocked the tiger off its feet and sent it spiralling to the floor with a broken neck from the force of the strike. "Shasabooey!" Po said in a stance as he readied for the next animal to bolt at him.

Instantaneously, as if acting like a bell to the start of a tournament, the two sides of adversaries faced each other and began the brawl once more. Over time, one by one, the numbers of the bandits dropped along with their bodies. Blood flew forth from them as Shen's knives, Jai and Tigress' swords cut into their skin. The unorthodox tune of the woks in Po's paws filling the cabin and overpowering the cries of the dying assailants. Necks snapped, bones cracked, skin was torn and blood spewed in a gruesome show of violence. Soon the enemy was defeated, finishing off with Leo. The great wolf hoisted the leopard who tried to assault Hao by the throat up against the wall of the main room. Shen stood at his side. The leopard's legs banged against the surface, and his arms tried to pry Leo's large paw from around its neck-effortless as it was. Everyone had been gathered together. Tai Lung had regained consciousness and remained in his room, comforting Ming and their son, who had stopped crying by now.

Fu instantly ran to her son and scooped him off the floor. "Oh, Hao!" She clutched the hybrid close to her chest, tears streaming down her face. "Thank goodness, you're safe!"

"Mama..." The cub whimpered as he let the tears stain his mother's vest.

Fu stroked his head as she cooed him softly. "Shh, shh. It's okay. It's all over." She looked up from her son to Shen standing by the great grey wolf.

Shifu, Po and the Furious Five stood a small distance away with Jai as they watched the event unfold.

Shen glared incredulously at the struggling feline. His lips trembled with a snarl. Leo's face was calm, but the fur strands and whiskers around his muzzle stained with dripping blood gave him a terrifying image. "We were promised safe passage." Shen snarled. "You're 'Commander' gave his word that we would not be harmed!"

The leopard managed to force a laugh from its tightened throat. "Fools, the lot of ya! You honestly believed our Commander would let you go so easily?" Shen's eyebrows dipped and Leo's mask shrank with a growl from his throat. He added pressure to the feline's neck. The leopard convulsed and choked, a line of blood running down the side of its maw. "It's...you...he wants!" He gurgled, looking to Jai. All eyes glanced to the lioness and then back to the leopard. Shen's tail twitched. Leo's red teeth appeared from beneath his lips. "You...are...all he...craves! He won't stop...till you're dead. All of ya."

Shen snapped his paw down and whipped out a throwing knife, holding the tip of the blade up under the chin of the leopard. "He will never harm my sister, never again!" The black feline sneered; he pushed up on the knife against the leopard's fur and skin.

"My...Commander...may not know...patience." The leopard scoffed. "But...he will wait for 'er...and for you. You will come...to him."

Shen pulled away his knife and sheathed it back on his belt. "You're right." He said. "I will go to him. And when I walk away, it'll be with me standing over his dead, cold body."

The leopard laughed deeply, spitting blood onto Leo's face. The wolf was unfazed by the spray of liquid. "I say again...fools. You'll be...slaughtered. And when...he's finished with you...he'll move onto 'is main goal."

Leo, Shen and Jai all blinked stupidly, simultaneously and looked to each other quizzically. "What do you mean?" Jai hissed as she stepped forward. "What goal?"

The leopard laughed again. "You mean you haven't figured it out yet? Our Commander will make gods out of us all. He will make us the ultimate warriors! The ultimate protectors of this world; it's time for a new way of life!"

"What are you talking about?" Shen demanded.

"The time has come, for the true predators to stand on top and the prey to be hunted. For the weak to stand aside and let the strong take the lead." The trapped feline looked from Shen to Leo. "Isn't that the way things work, G_eneral?"_ The feline glared up through its eyebrows at him. Leo's red orbs blinked again, his tail slipped in between his legs and his ashen fur shivered. His ears dropped down slightly. "Yes, you know how the system works. We know that you're one of Them, the ones from the tales and myths! You're a Blood Knight!"

Fu, Hao, Shifu, Po and the rest of the Furious Five all drew their attention to the large wolf holding up the leopard against the wall. "You...you mean he's..." Po stuttered.

"He's a feral!" The leopard finished, staring right into Leo's eyes.

"But how can that be!" Shifu whispered, looking to the ground and shaking his head. "No. It...it can't be true. They're just stories." His sapphire eyes looked up from the ground to the leopard. "Just stories." He repeated with disbelief.

"Look with your eyes!" The feline shouted this time. "You seem 'im standing before you! He's twice the size of any of ya. He's stronger, faster! He used no weapon but 'is claws and fangs to kill off my friends."

Fu hugged Hao closer to her chest. The young cub stared on with curiosity through the salty tears in his eyes. "But...he...he saved me."

"He didn't save you!" The leopard snapped. Hao retreated into his mother's arms again. "He just 'ad the sweet taste of blood and wanted to 'ave more. It's like a drug to 'im. He needs it. He's wild for it." The feline motioned to the bodies littering the room with his eyes. "Those guys, the ones he killed, they were his buds. They followed 'im. They looked up to 'im. And now they're dead!"

"Only because they tried to kill us!" Jai bellowed. "He was protecting us! He was protecting _me_!"

Gazes travelled to Jai and then the wolf. The leopard chuckled darkly as he looked to his former Commander. "We know 'bout you, traitor!" Jai blinked in question. "We know of your affair with this monster. We've always known of how you two would frolic off into the woods. You spoiled yourself! You've lost your purity to him! You've become one of Them. You loved him, so you love Them! Filth! The lot of ya!"

Jai was about to move in and kill the leopard but was beaten to it by Leo. His tail rose into the air and his mask twisted into a vigorous form of fury and rage. His ears drew fully back in anger. The large wolf's lips rose again, revealing the purple gums and teeth speckled with fresh blood. His paw tightened on the feline's throat and the leopard began to writhe in his grasp, tail twitching, legs kicking. Leo pulled the feline off of the wall and brought his face an inch from his own. The leopard could feel the lupine's warm breath on his muzzle and the stench of blood on his breath. And when the spotted leopard looked into Leo's eyes he saw not only the red hue of his irises, but a never-ending flame of pure predatory wildness. The leopard began to try and push away with fear and horror this time. "I am going to tell you something, whelp!" Leo growled, not from his throat but way down in his stomach. "I may have taken Jai as my mate, but I did it out of love. I gave her the one thing she never had! I am more powerful than you! I am more powerful than your new Commander. And I swear, on my life, that he will never harm another soul ever again! I swear that if Shen fails to defeat him," Shen looked down to the ground for a second and then to his kung fu friends. Shifu and the Furious Five- apart from Tigress and Po who both looked at him sadly- stared intensely at the black feline in astonishment. The Grand Master felt as if he had just been kicked in the groin. Their attention was brought back to Leo a second later. "...I will personally tear Hei Xin's heart out from his chest while it's still beating. I will protect my lover. I will protect these people! I will save those in the village of Xi'an! For I am a feral!"

Shen's eyes widened as he watched the spectacular performance that now seemed to come from Leo. As much as it was exhilarating and addictive to watch, Shen saw the look in his friend's eyes and felt a cold feeling in his stomach. Jai too felt this wintry sensation rush through her body. Never before had she seen this side of her lover. It scared her to the core of her heart, but it also drew her towards Leo, physically, all the more. She listened intently as he bawled powerfully.

"For I. Am. A Pure One!"

With the finishing bark of his words Leo drew back his head, opening his maw to its full size. The leopard wriggled in the wolf's grasp as he saw the glimmering sparkle coming off the lupine's blood stained, needle-sharp teeth. The creature screamed in panic as Leo thrust his head forward and sank his teeth into his prey's neck. The cry transformed into a shaken wail of pain as the leopard felt Leo's fangs sink deeper into its throat, blood squirted like juice from an apple as the wolf bit harder and harder, feeling the touch of the feline's spinal cord with his teeth. Fu covered Hao's eyes and instantly turned away. Viper, Crane, Mantis and Monkey averted their eyes and covered their ears. From inside Tai Lung's room, the kung fu master covered his wife's ears. Ming cupped Little Shen's ears down on his head, preventing him from hearing such sounds. The only ones who witnessed the event full out were Jai and Shen- who looked on without the slightest twinge of emotion- Shifu gaped as felt his stomach tie into a knot. Tigress glared at the scene like Jai and Shen. Po, having experienced the event first hand, shuddered as memories filled his mind. But, no matter how much he wanted to, he could not draw himself away from looking. The sounds of the leopard's cries soon diminished into soft whimpers before fading into nothing. A heavy silence came over the cabin.

Pulling his teeth back, and tearing a chunk of the feline's throat with it, Leo chucked the body aside with a grunt. He dropped the chunk of flesh; it fell with a wet slapping sound on the floorboards. Dropping to his knees, Leo felt a familiar sensation in the balls of his feet, rising up through his body with a familiar pure energy. The lupine could not hold it in. Spreading himself on all fours, like how had down as a cub so many years ago; Leo arched his chest out and raised his head to the roof, ears drawn flat against his skull. With a deep breath and his eyes closed Leo let out a mighty howl that lasted longer, deeper and fuller of emotion than when he had lost his parents or Ling.

In the village of Xi'an, perched atop the tallest building, Hei Xin's spitefully black claws scratched away of the stone tiling rooftop. His abyssal feathers ruffled and his piercing red eyes moved to the forest on the edge of village horizon to the forest where the howl erupted. The eagle's head dipped with malevolence and a smirked formed its way onto his long sharp beak. His mind thought of one thing only.

Everything was working to plan.


	22. Paint it Red with Blood

Is Love Safe?

Chapter Twenty Two- Paint it Red with Blood

Chen Hue Leigh, Ming, Little Shen, Hei Xin, Fu, Leo, Jai and Shen (c) mine

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It was twilight hour.

The forest air was cold and sharp, a bitter taste left by the events of the morning's occurrences. The moon curved in the sky, half-illuminating the world below in a hollow glow of darkness and ashen light. The rays sliced through the leaves of the pine trees surrounding the small cabin hidden in the shadows of the forest. No sound came from within the wooden hut. It was still, somewhat void of life though existing souls dwelled within its walls. Tai Lung drew a match across the table, lighting the small stick and sending the room in a dimly lit glow of bouncing shadows. He moved the small flame to the candle wicks on the restored table; the broken wax cylinders caught the fire on their wicks. Tai Lung then moved to the nearest lantern and cupped the dwindling flame as he rose it up; the lamp was brought to life. The main room was now filled with an elucidated hue, and though brightness had come to the cabin the mood was lifted no higher than ground upon which the hut stood. Tai Lung blew out the match flame and lowered his head, standing by the lantern with heaviness in his stomach. The snow leopard turned his eyes sideways to his foster brother who leaned predominantly against the frame of what once was the front doorway, staring out to the woods with an unending gaze.

Tai Lung sighed through his nose as he continued to stare at his brother's back. The moonlight casting through the trees caught his black frame and sent it into a glowing white aura. It made Tai Lung think. Was this a sign that his brother was still good? That even though he had changed so much on the outside, inside he was the same old lion that he grew up to know? The snow leopard found it hard to answer his own questions, though simple as they were.

From inside of the kitchen, Po stood at the counter with Tigress leaning in deep thought at his side. Nothing had been said between the two of them but the undeniable feeling of failure plagued at their hearts. They had failed to keep the promise that Shen's real identity would remain a secret from Shifu and the others. But they knew. They always knew that somewhere along this journey the truth would be revealed. They only wished it came later rather than sooner. Now they both wondered, hearts gripping with apprehension, if Shifu thought of betrayal, not only for his foster son, but for them as well. They had not made eye contact with the red panda since this morning's events when the feline's disguise had been revealed. In all fairness, almost no one made contact with anyone. The air was too thick with lies and deceit that anyone could find their voices to speak either.

The whistle of the tea pot on the stove soon rose above the silence. Po let the high pitched squeal wash away the thoughts that swirled in his mind. He soon pulled the pot free of the flames and moved to pour a bunch of small cups of tea on two separate trays. Tigress, too, came out of her daze. She unfurled her arms and leaned off the counter, taking the tray in her paws once Po was done. She stopped for a moment, as did Po. Together they stared down into the small pools of hot liquids, seeing the multiple faces that looked back at them. They glimpsed at the sorrow, the uncertainty in their expressions. It made them want to look away and deny it all, like waking from a dream- such a fantasy that would make of the situation. Tigress blinked moved first, lifting the tray up and walking through the kitchen door. Po followed, neither deciding to use the great hole in the wall between the main room and the scullery. Slowly they walked around the cabin and gave the cups of tea out, one for each of their friends, plus the two newcomers. They were careful not to step on the blood that painted the floorboards from Hei Xin's fallen companions. The bodies had long since been removed and placed somewhere out in the forest by Shen and the Pure One wolf.

Ming sat in her usual place, Little Shen in her arms. It was the first time that anybody got to see the cub for what he was: a small bundle of grey fur with brown and yellow spots. He was curled up against a purple cloth which he held in his paws like a blanket. His eyes held firmly shut as he clung to his mother's warmth. The young cub looked so much like his father; it would have made Shifu's heart melt if he had not already hardened it into stone. Tigress set down a cup into the blind female's paw. Ming managed a smile out of the corner of her lips as felt Tigress' paw gently pushing the mug into her grasp. The striped kung fu master grinned herself and moved onto Crane, Monkey, Mantis and Viper, giving them each a cup. None of them moved, they simply grinned in thanks. The striped feline then walked over to Fu.

The lynx sat on a chair by herself, away from the table and the rest of the residents. Her violet eyes dancing in the candle light as she looked over to her husband standing by the front doorway. Since this morning's brawl Fu had remained distant to Shen, or was it the other way around? For reasons unknown to them, and the rest of the gang, they could not bring themselves to connect in the way that loving couples normally would when forcibly separated and then reunited. Was it because of the amount of change in Shen that had taken place during their split that Fu was afraid of? Or was it Shen, himself, who feared for his wife and son from what he had become? He was a feral animal now! How could he ever live a normal life again being a feral?

Fu managed to draw her eyes away from Shen's back as she looked to Tigress holding out a warm cup for her to take. Fu looked up to kung fu master's honey coloured eyes and accepted the tea. She gave no smile but a stoic face. Fu turned back to facing Shen. Tigress did not resent the response, she understood. The striped feline bent down and offered a cup to young cub sitting on Fu's lap. The hybrid took the cup in his tiny, still slightly-shaking paws. Tigress could see the fear in his multicoloured eyes from this morning. Poor little guy, he fought on a criminal all by himself; it was only the adrenaline still wearing off. He'd be back to his old self in no time. Tigress couldn't help but place a reassuring paw on his cheek and stroke his fur with her thumb. Hao's shivers faded a little and he smiled gratefully, raising the tea to his lips and taking a sip.

Making it swift, yet showing no hurry in her motion, Tigress placed the last cup on her tray in front of Shifu. The Grand Master had his head held in his small bony hands, ears drawn back. His sapphire eyes had lost some of their shine, revealing the ever-present age that now showed in his features. His white fur looked dreadfully grey. He gawked into the fluid, seeing his reflection. It was not the red panda he had seen many times before, but a frail hollow case. Tigress placed the tray on the table and took her own cup, standing with the tea held at her midsection. She stood behind Shifu, watching him intently out the corner of her yellow eyes. She felt dearly for her master, seeing him this way. The last time he ever looked this downbeat was when he adopted her from the orphanage after Tai Lung's rampage. Tigress now feared that Shifu would revert back to his old ways. Tigress lifted the liquid to her muzzle and took a gulp of the hot brew. It burned her throat, bringing back a feeling of life to her body.

Po's rounds of delivering out the brew began with Tai Lung. The panda padded up to his ex-enemy and lifted up the tray with a comforting gleam in his eyes. Tai Lung's dipped head faced him briefly. They connected eyes. And after a while of just gazing at each other, Tai Lung smiled wearily and reached up to take a cup. Po nodded and moved onto Shen. As the panda moved towards his other ex-enemy, Po felt as if something was holding him back, slowing him down as he approached Shen from behind. Fear? Discomfort? Uncertainty? Joining the feline in the doorway, Po rose up a paw and gently laid it on Shen's shoulder. At first the feline did not move, but his head gradually sunk to his chest with a grave sigh. Po understood his discomfort; he could see it in the feline's reddened orbs. They were weighted with loneliness and anguish. Eventually, the black feline reached up and took a cup, taking one big gulp of the entire brew as if it were a shot of Japanese sake. Shen made no eye contact with Po as he swallowed the hot liquid, holding the cup loosely in his paw after he was finished.

Po looked to the floor in disappointment. Maybe it was true. Maybe Shen had changed, but for what cause? Deciding to leave the feline to himself, Po turned away and made for the training dojo. With his jade eyes focused on the flooring, seeing the scrapes of drying blood the panda could not help but feel his long fur shiver. The scars running up his arm itched, the one on his throat too throbbed. He ignored them. Looking through the torn paper door, Po's eyes adjusted to the dim light of the darkened room. Sitting in the furthest corner from the entrance, Po spotted Leo's long muscular legs hanging out from the shadows, his rubicund eyes glowing in the abyss. Jai's own pair next to his own. Po inhaled stiffly and stepped into the room. The instant his foot touched the floorboards, the two pairs of red eyes snapped in his direction. The panda froze.

"What do you want?" Jai's voice sneered.

Po's heart got lodged in his throat. "Um..." He stuttered. "...I...I brought you some t-tea. If-if you'd like some...or not?" He held out the tray.

"We don't want any of your..." The lioness was cut off as Po saw Leo's large ashen paw rise into the air, silencing her.

"We'd love a cup, sounds welcoming." Leo's voice spoke. Though Po could not see, he had a feeling that the Pure One was smiling. The panda padded over to the two lovers and knelt down before them like a servant. He rested the tray on his knee and picked up two cups, offering them to the shadows. Leo's great ashy paw came out and gently took his mug. Jai did the same, but with a bit of vice in her movement. Po flinched visibly as the lioness took her cup and downed the liquid in one flow, just like her brother had done. How alike they were. Leo took his time in drinking his beverage. His bloody muzzle slurped at the tea slowly, soon finishing the small cup with a sigh. "Thank you, Dragon Warrior." Leo thanked politely. "That was some good stuff."

"It was just tea." The panda replied modestly.

"But _good_ tea." Leo quickly retorted. "Thank you."

Po felt a small grin snake its way onto his lips. For reasons unknown he felt comfortable around this creature. This said 'monster'. Like they had more things in common than they realised. The panda took both of their mugs and placed them on the tray again. He then set the dishes aside and sat down on his backside, staring into Leo's eyes.

The wolf just gazed back at him. "Why do you stare, Dragon Warrior?" He asked plainly.

Po blinked, blushing as he rubbed the back of his neck. "Huh...oh, sorry, was I staring? Sorry, I guess I can't help it. I mean with your eyes an' all."

The wolf smiled discretely and tilted his head to the side innocently. "You are fascinated by our eyes?"

Po glanced a few times, back and forth between the floor and Leo. "Yeah." He sighed in defeat.

Leo propped his head back upright. "It's okay to ask questions, Dragon Warrior. I will not bite." Po felt the need to chuckle at Leo's joke. The wolf eased the tension by doing so. Po eventually joined in. Jai stayed silent. "The reason why my eyes are like this, the same for Shen and Jai, is because we are fully feral. It's like...a symbol, to our current state. And a way to connect to our ancestors, if you will."

"But those guys, the ones who attacked us this morning..."

Leo interrupted instantly and nodded in understanding. "Yes, they had red eyes too. They were fully feral. I believe that their Commander, Hei Xin, has turned his entire army into feral beings, which is not too good on your behalf.

Po's eyes filled with an overwhelming sense of despair. He looked to the floor, thinking deeply on what happened now a few hours ago. "But," Po asked eventually, gazed up and into Leo's bloody orbs. "...what is it like?"

"You mean, what is it like being a Pure One?" Leo questioned back. "Or being fully feral?"

Po shrugged. "Both, I guess."

Leo's head turned to the side and but his eyes never left the sitting panda. His stare was strong and wounding, as if trying to find out what it was Po wished to know so badly. "I know I said it's never wrong to ask, but excuse me from enquiring: why?"

Po's lips twitched, almost visibly, and he averted his glance again but this time with purposeful intentions. He thought of his dream and the great white wolf with the green eyes: remembering what the creature had said about him having to become feral in order to win the inevitable battle to come. Jai dropped an eyebrow in the dark to the Dragon Warrior, sceptical of his sudden uncontrollable movements. It didn't escape Leo's notice either. The panda bit his bottom lip before answering timidly. "Call it based on thought...a-and past experiences."

Jai and Leo turned to face each other before gazing at the panda with suspicion. Their thoughts on Po dwelled heavily in a whirlpool of possibilities. Leo stuck out his jaw but decided it best to leave the situation alone, for now. "Very well." He said with a click of his tongue. Jai remained silent beside her mate, staring incredulously at Po with her hard scarlet spheres. "I was asked the same question by your friend, Shen, when we were up in the Dragon's Pass." The great wolf moved in the darkness, getting to his feet. Po looked up and rose too. Jai followed suit. "And I would be more than happy to explain these things to you, Dragon Warrior." The lupine looked over to the door and then back to Po. He placed a large but light paw on the bear's shoulder. The panda gazed down in slight awe at the Pure One touching him before looking back to Leo's face. "But considering the events that have taken place, I believe it is in your best interest if I only said as much as that even though it does have its advantages, there is always a downside to everything."

Po understood: the basic concept of Yin and Yang, a common lesson that is taught throughout all of China. There wasn't a farmer or an Emperor who did not know this potential seminar. The panda nodded.

"Good." Leo smirked. "Come." He said, turning to the doorway. Leo took hold of the top frame and ducked his head as he stepped into the main room, Po tracked behind him with Jai in tow. Once on the other side Po moved away from the wolf and walked round the table to where Tigress stood. The feline and monochromatic bear made eye contact for the first time that day. The kung fu feline saw something in the Dragon Warrior's jade orbs that made her wonder. Po motioned with his head to the bearing of the dojo. As Leo and Jai stepped into the main room, all attention was drawn to the pair of feral creatures. Shen glanced out of the corner of his eye to the wolf and lioness but sighed profoundly through his nose and went back to glowering out at the forest in the moonlight.

Seeing he had everyone he needed to talk to, their attention based on him, Leo took a deep breath. "I believe it's time I explained myself." Shifu did to remove his heads from his hand, but rather glimpsed up to the Pure One; he felt that he could look at the wolf for more than a few seconds. For every little snap of a vision he got of Leo, Shifu just shuddered a little and shrank back into the contents of his mind. His blue eyes grew pale with age and haunting memories. Leo spoke on. "I can understand that your trust in me is a bit troubled, now that you know of my origin. But I speak for myself, Jai and Shen that as a Pure One, or a Blood Knight as you call us, I mean no harm to any of you." No one responded. "I am here to help you, to aid you in such times as what occurred this morning. You have seen my skills and power; Shen and Jai now have the same abilities, though of a lower scale. Those men that attacked you this morning, they were feral. But were not Pure Ones. That is why we were able to beat them. And I believe it is the right thing to do to let you know that those animals were once part of the group that Jai used to control." The lupine motioned to the lioness at his side. "She was once the Commander of those men, the leader of gang of criminals and mercenaries. True that we could have been considered the bad guys, but we have changed. Our only aim now is to stop Hei Xin- the new, feral, Commander of Jai's old group. We've left everything about our past with them in the mud." The grey wolf raised an arm to the front door; everyone looked to find him pointing at the still statue of the black feline by the entrance. "Shen has agreed to help us fight Hei Xin, but I believe we cannot do it alone."

"You want our help." Tigress stated with a slight growl in her tone as she glared back at the Pure One.

Leo nodded. "Yes." The room was suddenly filled with muttering of disagreements.

This time Jai stepped forward. "If we had the chance and ability to have Hei Xin killed in the past we would have done it already, but he has proved too powerful. We can't fight him without people to match the numbers and abilities of his men."

"He has already killed off those who were still loyal to Jai." Leo added. From over in her seat, Fu scoffed with an intended level of audibility. Jai's red eyes narrowed on the lynx with building aversion. "Even a person who was a close friend of mine..." Leo's voice broke slightly, his crimson eyes gaining interest on the floor, giving an ever-so occasional towards Tai Lung, but never fully resting on the snow leopard. They held a great secret in their casings, more than he was letting on. It was not the right time to tell. "...his name was Ling. And had it not been for him, we would have never made an escape when Hei Xin brought down betrayal on us. Now all that remains is him and his army."

"Army!" Fu's voice yelled. Leo and Jai clocked their eyes over to the lynx. Fu placed Hao on the floor and stood from her chair; her violet eyes protruding at the duo with distaste. "You mean to tell me that out there is a militia of wild animals bent on slaughtering men, women and children?" Though he did not want to answer such a question Leo acknowledged her with a dip of his muzzle. "Well, I'm sorry. I lost my husband once, and believed my son to be dead too many times; I have no intentions of letting it happen again." The feline shook her head. "Not again."

Leo looked desperate. "Please," He begged. "...Hei Xin does not care how far his enemies go; he'll hunt any of them down till his last breath."

"It's true." Shifu's whispering voice piped in. Everyone looked to the hunched red panda with disbelief. "Before, Hei Xin was part of the Imperial Army. He was powerful, strong and determined. But due the brutality he placed on his comrades it was decided he was a threat not only to our enemies. I knew this from first hand sights of his training when I had visited the Forbidden Kingdom in the past." The Grand Master paused for a short while. "And now, it seems, he _is_ the enemy. I should have seen it coming."

Fu looked over her foster father-in- law with mistrustful purple eyes, her mouth hung in an open gape. She closed her maw and locked her jaw, clenching her paws into shaking fists. "I don't care who he was or what he is, I won't let this happen!" The lynx walked up to the table and spread her paws forcefully out on the wooden surface, her claws dug into the timber. She glared solidly at Leo and Jai. "If you want to go and get yourself killed by fighting this guy, then be my guest. But leave my family out of it."

Jai's patience had slipped past the thin barrier she had been holding it behind since the lynx had scoffed at Leo. The lioness moved up to the table and slammed her paws onto the counter with such controlled might that cracks formed in the woodwork. Ming jumped in her seat a little. Even the cups still filled with tea bounced, but the liquid remained within them, amazingly. Little Shen stirred in her arms but was rocked back to sleep. By the front entrance, Shen's ears pulled towards the table. "Look! If we don't stop Hei Xin, you won't have a family to love anymore. And neither will I! So would you shut your hole and, for once, listen to reason. The only way we're going to survive for the rest of lives is not by running away but by staying put and putting up a fight." Jai growled.

"That's suicide!" Fu hissed.

"It'll save countless lives!"

"But not our own! You said you lost your men to this Hei Xia- or whatever his name is- how can we beat him? Look at what happened this morning." Fu swung her arm round to the messy room that the residents stood in. "His men, alone, caused this damage! They almost killed my son and Tai Lung, there's no way we can win!"

Silence filled the cabin. Everyone stared between the two felines facing each other. Having only just met Jai, most of them were astonished by her spirit and enthusiasm. But all were more surprised with Fu. The lynx had never acted in such as fashion that she would step out of the shell of her timid self and tackle Shen's feral sister head on without getting so much as a scratch from the lioness. The quietness went on for seconds, though it felt like tedious hours. Jai and Fu never broke their fierce looks at one another.

No one moved.

"The days grow dark," Shen slowly said, breaking the silence. His voice riddled with an echoing whisper that rode lightly on the breeze as it blew in and around the main cabin room. The tone was hollow and grim. "...and the nights are getting longer." Turning around the feline placed his empty cup on the window pane at his side as he faced into the room. He rose his head up and looked down upon the residents, even Leo, with a ruby hard stare. His family and friends looked back at him without the slightest blink. "Times have changed." He slowly walked up to the table, standing between his wife and sister. "We need to stand together." He looked at each of them both with a strong glance. "A house divided cannot stand." Shen spoke, tapping the table with his fist for every word. "A family separated, is no family at all." Tai Lung, Tigress and Po's ears cocked at Shen. Mantis, Monkey, Viper and Crane stared at him with comprehension. They all stepped towards the table. Shifu's paling eyes looked up from his tea; a spark of life was brought back into their gleam. All around Shen, the inhabitants started to feel a returning glitter of hope in their hearts as they united around the furniture. Leo took on the back ranks of the circle. Ming just grinned enthusiastically. "If we are to face this enemy, we will do it together." Shen carried on. "We will do it as a one. As a group of friends...no!" He snapped up a claw and smiled for the first time since the morning rise of the sun. His beaming red orbs looked to each one of the animals that had gathered around the table; even Hao squished his way to his father's side. Shen looked down on the hybrid and placed a paw on his cub's head, ruffling the fur on top. "No...we are a family." He said softly to the child.

"Then we shall fight as one." Po finished. He and Shen met gazes with a stone lock. The feral feline smiled keenly.

Fu, feeling completely alone and deceived in the conversation, shook her head in denial and turned away from the table. She forcefully pushed herself from the group and ran out of the front door, stopping at the top of the porch stairs. The lynx shivered, not because of the cold but because of empty feeling in her heart, the fear that twisted her insides to mulch. Tears stung her lilac eyes, gradually forcing their way upfront and down her furry cheeks. Fu gasped as she wrapped her arms around herself, placing a paw up to her mouth, trying to stop the oncoming sobs that burned in her throat.

"Fu?" A gentle voice called in her ear. The lynx immediately ceased her whimpers and swallowed them back down, she inhaled sharply. Her tail twitched in arrogance as her stunning wine tinted eyes narrowed to slits and her beautiful eyebrows dipped steeply. It was not Shen, but his sister that stood in wake of the feline. Fu growled warningly in her throat. "Fu...please just listen to me. I may not understand what you have, but I can sympathise, both with you and with Shen when I say I know what it feels like to lose the ones you love." Fu did not turn around. Jai sighed greatly but went on. "Before Shen was born I thought I lost our parents in a fire. I soon learned that they were alive, after I killed the person I believed to be responsible; I wanted to be with them so much. But I couldn't." Jai looked away sadly. "I feared that if my followers knew I cared for my family they would betray me and kill them in secret. Someone would try to take my position just for loving my family. So, I watched as my father killed mine and Shen's mother. But I never left my brother's side from then on. I always watched over him, from the time he was a little cub...to the day of your wedding."

On the last remark Fu's fur bristled in the moonlight. Her eyes blew up to the size of plates. "What!" She shrieked, whipping round and facing Jai. Her mauve eyes stabbed at the lioness. "You spied on my family, at our wedding! All this time, you're the one responsible for taking Shen away from me and Hao. Your men almost killed us in the process!"

A crowd gathered at the front door, little Hao had a front row audience to the argument between his mother and aunt. Shen stood at his side in support. Jai held up her paws defensively. "I did not mean for things to escalate to such trouble. I gave the order for you or your cub not to be harmed."

"Liar! They came at us with swords and other weapons. Twice! You expect me to believe that you sent them to our house, taking away my Shen and not try to murder me or my son along the way? And then at the Thread of Hope, too?" Though Fu was aware of her husband and son as well as Leo and the gang kung fu masters witnessing the fight, the lynx spoke on with spite and willpower. Shen and Hao starred at the lynx with astonishment, never before had they seen this side of Fu. "You could have showed up yourself! You could have prevented all of this had you only presented yourself to us!"

Jai's paw closed to fists and she slammed them at her sides. Though it was true she had sent assassins out to murder the lynx and cub, she did not want to be reminded of the memory. "I told you! I could not do that! Had I done so I would have lost the trust of my men and they would have killed me, you and your family off in one night. I had no other choice!"

"You had no other choice?" Fu sneered. "You always had a choice! You could have prevented all of this from happening. You! But instead you let your pride take lead and ruin the life of me, my son and my husband."

Jai's red eyes flamed. "If I had done so, none of you would have lived to see another day."

"And now we more likely never will!" Fu hissed. "You're actions have not only put my family at danger but everyone here! What about Shifu? What about Po, Tigress or the Furious Five? What about Tai Lung, Ming and their cub? You've doomed us all."

"I never wanted this!" Jai barked, shaking her head. Fu swore she could see the light of the moon reflect in the building tears in the lioness' eyes.

The lynx was unmoved. "But you _chose_ it!"

Jai hissed with venom. "Out of something you'd never understand: the fear of losing the last remnants of your family!"

Fu reacted upon pure instinct and rage. "How _dare_ you!" She screamed. Her claws shot out from her paws and her arm lashed out at Jai's cheek like a whip. The lioness' roared in pain and jerked her head to the side; fresh blood flew from her face and dappled the outdoors floorboards. Everyone gasped in unison. Shen stepped out from the crowd and took his wife by the waist, pulling her away from Jai effortlessly, but the lynx was so filled with hatred that she kicked and slammed at Shen's bulky frame endlessly. She tried at all means to reach for the woman who had the guts to call herself Shen's sister. It infuriated her even more that this feline was now related to her. "How dare you!" Fu parroted from her trembling lips and crying eyes, pushing with all her might against Shen's hold.

Hao stood in the doorway, forced to watch with glassy eyes as he looked vigorously between his parents and his aunt.

Leo jumped from the group gathering at the door and stood between Fu and his lover. For a moment Jai did not turn her head back to face Leo, though it did not prevent the Pure One from seeing the three slash marks that ran across his lover's face. They wept with red tears. He cupped her cheeks, the blood smearing his grey fur. He did not care. "Jai..." He whispered her name. The sound of weeping came from the lioness. She rose up the flat of her paw to her mouth. "Jai? Jai, look at me." The lioness eventually faced her mate. Leo's red eyes rested on her face. For the first time, since they had met, tears fell from Jai's face. She looked helpless, afraid and hurt. Leo's ears dropped all the way. Jai couldn't bear to be seen in her current state; she buried herself in the wolf's chest and wept with great intensity, Fu's vile voice ringing in her ears.

But there was another cry that reverberated throughout the woodland area. It was Hao. All of the things that had taken place in the space of the days that had passed; the attack on his home, the assassination attempt on him and his mother, the other attack on the bridge- the believing loss of his mother- the battle that happened this morning, and now the heated argument occurring before him. It was too much for a young cub to bear. No child should ever have to go through such torment. Never. But Hao had the misfortune of experiencing all the emotions and adrenalines in such a short space of time. It frightened him; it scared him to his very soul. The tiny hybrid clutched his head, pulling down on his ears as he observed his mother's violet assault on Jai, seeing the blood that flew from her face as she was stricken by Fu's claws. The look on his aunt's face as Leo held her in his large arms, the crystal liquids that dropped from her feral eyes, he finally snapped. Unable to hold in his emotions any longer, Hao arched his chest out, thrust his arms at his sides and tip-toed on his paws as he roared to the heavens. Fu stopped wriggling in Shen's arms at once. Jai stifled her cries and everyone stepped away from the cub. Shen and the kung fu masters all thought back to when Shen roared after they had escaped from Chen Leigh's men after sledding down the mountains of the Dragon's Pass on a tree. It was exactly the same. Hao's parents remained where they were, terrified by the sound coming from their son. From inside the cabin, Little Shen began to wail at the loud noise that pricked his ears. Ming tried to comfort him.

Hao's bawl was full of pain, fear, anger, frustration and grief. All of it poured out at once. And as the howl from the cub dimmed, whimpering sniffs took over. Hao bolted from the cabin, running past Jai, Shen, Fu and Leo. He jumped over the stairs and onto the cold forest floor, scurrying over the leaves and twigs and into the darkness of the forest.

"Hao!" Fu and Shen called together. The cub did not stop, he just kept on running. Tears flew from his face, biting at his fur and skin as they trailed in the air.

Shen had released hold of his wife. "Hao!" Fu screamed, reaching out a paw for him. "Hao! Come back!"

Shen turned to the kung fu masters in the doorway. His eyes landed on Tigress. "Help me! He could get himself hurt!"

"Or worse!" Leo added frantically as he left Jai and stepped out after Shen with Tigress. The trio all pounced after Hao, running in the general direction that the grief-stricken cub had run off in. Jai stood on the porch by, away from the others, staring out into the vast regions of the forest, watching as her lover, brother and Tigress chased after Hao with every means of bringing him back. Fu stood at the top of the stairs, silent and unmoving, her gaze never leaving the woods. Her whole body suddenly collapsed on the spot, dropping to her knees, back hunched and animalistic cries coming from her throat that called out towards her son. Po and Tai Lung were by her side as she fell. As Jai stared tight lipped at her distraught sister-in-law, the lioness could not help but feel somewhat entirely responsible. It festered at her heart, slowing the beating muscle in her chest till it became as hollow as the night air.

On and on Hao ran as fast his little legs could carry him, sprinting on all fours into the darkening belly of the forest. His yellow and purple eyes stung with flowing tears. He knew that parents and aunt loved each other; he knew that they were family, but sometimes it proved more than someone as infantile as him to take when seeing such vehemence. He needed peace; he needed the tranquillity of his own mind and body. His ears could pick up his father's voice, and two others calling his name. He dared not turn back. It pained him to see his parents' faces or his friends. Skidding to a halt, Hao looked around frantically- he couldn't out run them forever. Turning to the nearest tree, the cub ran up to the thick bark and jumped up against its wooden frame, sinking his claws into the tree as he pushed himself up higher and higher off the ground. When he thought himself to be high enough, Hao crawled onto the largest branch and looked down over the world below through the illuminated leaves. He saw as a figure appeared in the depths beneath, it was Tigress.

The striped feline cupped her paws up to her mouth and shouted his name. "Hao! Hao! Where are you?" There was caring and anxiety in her voice. "Hao, please! Please, come back!" Hao bit his lip and tongue, wanting so much to cry out to the kung fu master but the images of what happened in the cabin exploded in his mind and clouded his better judgement. The cub closed his eyes and cowered back onto the branch. He wrapped his tail around his tiny frame and laid across the stem, whimpering to himself. The light of the crescent moon shone down upon his quivering form in pity.

Time passed by.

Hao had long since drifted into an uneasy sleep, having cried himself into a perturbed slumber. His dreams tore at his mind, torturing him, tearing at his soul from the inside out. The moonlight still shone brightly on his wriggling body. A shadow passed over. A mysterious silhouette, flying through the starry night sky; swooping over the trees and flapping its great black wings. "Little one..." The shadow called soothingly. Hao stirred. "Little one...wake up."

The cub's eyes battered open and he lifted his sleepy head, the fur on the side he had been sleeping on all ruffled. "Huh...wh...what?" The shadow flew over him again, casting his body into the shade. Hao's eye opened up fully and he gasped, ogling the form soaring above. "Who...who are you?" Hao asked as he watched the creature flap its wings; lowering itself onto a branch above from the one he stood on. The cub eyed his visitor curiously. They were an eagle, a large eagle, with feathers as black as the night around them and wide wings that covered the sky. The avian drew them into its body. Hao's feline eyes dilated and he saw the features of the bird. Their feathers were uneven, their body littered with scars and cuts. But of all the things he saw, Hao could not tear his gaze away from the eagle's eyes. "You...your eyes, they're..."

"Red." The avian finished. He bobbed his razor beak. "Yes, my eyes are red, little one. I am sure you've seen these before. Am I right?"

Hao slowly nodded. "Yeah, my Baba has eyes just like yours, my aunt too, and her wolf friend."

The eagle held back a smirk and feigned an expression of worry and concern, his eyebrows dipped in anxiety. "Why aren't you with your parents, little one?" He asked. "Why are you here all by yourself?"

Hao sniffed and rubbed his nose with his forepaw. "I...I ran away."

The avian gasped. "Oh my word, that's terrible. Why did you run from your family?"

"My Mama and my aunt were fighting. I...I got upset and ran. I was angry at them. I almost hated them."

The eagle dipped his head down to Hao and shook it. "I can understand, little one. I know what it's like."

Hao sniffed again. "You do?" He asked with hopeful eyes.

The avian nodded again. "Yes, my little one, I do. My parents argued. They fought a lot; I got upset with them and ran away too. I never saw them again." The avian's gaze looked distant for a minute, not staring at Hao but past the hybrid cub into a state of nothingness. He soon blinked his red eyes and gazed back at Hao. "Would you like to come with me, little one? How about I get you something to eat and then I take you back to your parents. I'm sure that they're worried about you."

Hao hesitated at this point. He may have been young but he was taught well never to go away with strangers or event talk to one at least. But he had also been taught never to let his anger take control of him, and yet his mother had gone in the complete opposite direction of that rule and struck Jai. Maybe it was okay to disobey a rule ever now and then. And besides, this eagle was offering something to eat. Hao's stomach gurgled in agreement. And then he would be taken back to his parents. What harm could there be? He could apologize when he returned. Hao wiped the tears from his eyes and looked up to his new friend with a thankful smile and nodded contently, he reached out his paw to the avian.

Hei Xin smiled simply as he dropped down onto the branch with Hao; allow the cub to climb onto his back, holding onto his black feathers. The eagle's smile may have seemed harmless on the outside, but in his mind many thoughts of dark ideas and possibilities grew like a virus. He looked over his shoulder to Hao. "Got a good hold?" He asked. The cub acknowledged and gripped his feathers tightly. "Hang on." Hei Xin warned as he spread his large wings and leapt from the tree and flapped his way through the sky. The cold winds rushed through his feathers and Hao's fur, making the cub squeal with delight. Hei Xin's grin widened as he flew in the direction of the village of Xi'an, where his conquering army awaited for his return.


	23. Can't Play on Broken Strings

Is Love Safe?

Chapter Twenty Three- Can't Play on Broken Strings

Keera, Chen Hue Leigh, Ling, Little Shen, Ming, Hei Xin, Hao, Leo, Fu, Jai and Shen (c) mine

* * *

Shen growled with an unending defiance.

His body shuddered with a surge of energy generated by the insane pumping of his heart banging against his toned chest like beaten drum. His abyssal fur quivered in the shadows of erect trees and overcasting glow of the crescent moon. His tail snapped behind with frustration and irritation. Teeth seething in a glitter like sparkling jewels cut only to be used for tearing apart whatever creature dare lay a paw on his son. His crimsons eyes had lost all of their history but the love and compassion of a father who wanted nothing else than to hold his boy and know that he was safe.

The heaving feline shook his head with disbelief. "No!" He sneered. "No! He's out there. My son is out there and I have to find him!" The words replayed like a speech of motivation in Shen's mind.

"But Shen, be reasonable." The concerning tender tone of Tai Lung spoke in his ear. The bulking toned snow leopard bravely stood at his brother's side and leaned down on the banister of the front porch, easing the emotional distress that seemed to gravitate around Shen. His large paws spread out evenly on the rough woodwork. "Look out there." The spotted cat motioned with emphasis of a hefty arm. "It's a huge forest. Hao could be anywhere by now. You searched for two hours, and that was only with Leo and Tigress." Tai Lung's ember eyes moved from the bleak woodlands to his foster spouse at his side with still a hint of astonishment, yet a glimmer of understanding in their glance. "And then you went off alone for another three hours! Shifu and the rest of the Five had to go out just to be sure you weren't lost along the way." Tai Lung pushed off the banister and closed the gap between him and Shen. "It's early in the morning, Shen. Shifu, The Five, Po, Jai and Leo have all gone to bed. Fu's only in bed because she managed to cry herself to sleep after your first return. Even my own wife and cub shouldn't have been up till this late…but we stayed up for you and in hopes that Hao may turn up…"

Shen's had cracked to Tai Lung, his eyebrows dipped with the curl of his snarling muzzle lips. "He will come back!" He said in all but a growl.

"And I'm not about to give up hope on my nephew anytime soon." Tai Lung retorted with simple calmness. "But," The feline added as he lowered his head and met Shen's stare face to face. Tai Lung's courage preceded him as he lifted up a great grey arm and dropped it on Shen's shoulder, taking a firm grip of his brother. "….neither will I give up on you. But you have to give him time, Shen."

The anger in which twisted Shen's face into a menacing snarl loosed a bit. "What?" He questioned out of not understanding the ex-criminal's words.

Tai Lung felt a tug of a smile at the corner of his lips as he saw the splinter of change in Shen's composure. "I said to give him time, let him think of a way to deal with this. You and I- hell, I bet even Shifu- have done the same things before in our past when we were cubs. It's what they do to think on the situations people like us go through….at his _age_. No cub should ever have to endure such torment so young. It'll change them before they're ready. He just needs a moment to let his emotions out. By the roar he did tonight I'd say there's quite a bit bottle up inside of him."

By long since then the ire and wrath had diminished from Shen's face, releasing the wrinkles and crevices of tightened muscles that created the mask of fury that covered his muzzle. The entire feline's body had lost its rigid touch. Shen hissed and dropped his fists with a sigh of reluctance. "I'm just scared, Tai." The feline dropped his head with shut eyes. "I'm scared for my little boy." Shen faced his brother and reopened his eyes. Tai Lung gulped from a dry throat and stared into his little brother's orbs with care and benevolence. As a father, himself, he understood fully what it was Shen seemed to be going through at the current stage. He could see the sorrow and grief in Shen's bloody irises; they shone with affection and care for his family. A single glistening tear dropped out the corner and gleamed like a star on as it dribbled down Shen's cheek and onto the handrail. "I've only known him no longer than a year and he's much older than that. What kind of a father can't even look after his own son?" The disheartened male hung his head between his arms in shame. His claws on the banister tightened, the wood groaned with protest. "A failure of a father, that's who."

Tai Lung stared at the hunched feline with searching ember eyes. His mind wandered deep in thought as to how he was to help his brother. But something made him think: Shen was always a persevering and determined character who would let nothing, no obstacle, no person stand in his way to ensure he got what he wanted. And now with him being feral he was more powerful than Tai Lung could ever hope to be, so many more things could be accomplished that the snow leopard could only dream of. But this person, this cat, that stood before the snow leopard this night was not Shen. This was someone else inside the black feline's body. An imposter of the brother Tai Lung knew from a cub to the present day. If Shen was really standing beside him, Tai Lung would be arguing against his brother to stay in the cabin for the night and wait till morning to go and search for Hao once more, but with the help of his friends. Things would even escalate into a bit of a squabble just to settle on an agreement- just how they had done when they were little.

It was time to get the old Shen back.

Tai Lung pursed his lips and gripped Shen's shoulder tightly with his paw, a sign that he was here for the cat. But also to give a pre-apology for what he was about to do. Shifting his paw up from Shen's shoulder, Tai Lung moved closer to his brother as he slid his paw up Shen's neck to the back of his head, feeling the small tuffs of fur that represented his head hair. With a set jaw and a violent glint in his eye, Tai Lung gripped Shen's fur and yanked his head back. Shen pulled his paws away from the banister and reached up to his head on instinct, giving the spotted leopard the ability to push forward and slam Shen's head down on the wooden banister with a echoing thud. The wood cracked at the blow and splinters flew through the cold night air. The feral creature groaned in pain and grasped his forehead.

Tai Lung released his hold of Shen's fur and took a step back for safety on his own behalf, not knowing what it was Shen would do next. Shen growled as he balanced himself on the banister and grasped the front of his head. He peeled open his eyes and removed his paw, seeing, luckily, that there was no blood. The disorientated feline clenched his paw into a fist and spun to Tai Lung. "What was that for?" He snarled.

Tai Lung's calm manner made Shen wonder, past his dizziness and anger, as to how the spotted feline could be so relaxed and appear innocent after what he had just done. The toned cat shrugged his shoulders and crossed his arms in front of his chest. "To knock some sense back into that thing you call a brain." He smirked. Shen's growl rose. "You say you're a failure of a father, Shen, yet you've done things any other man would and could only dream of accomplishing. You've even done things that surpass me, and that's saying something."

Shen rubbed his skull tenderly and hiked an eyebrow in question to his older brother. "What do you mean?"

Tai Lung shrugged again. "I guess what I'm trying to say is that even though you've only know your son for twelve months and not any time longer, there is still a lifetimes worth of love still left inside you that is stronger and more powerful than anything in the eternal planes. Shen, you have a wonderful wife and a loving child. They love you back, strongly, but it can never compare to the love that you have stored up inside yourself all your years alone since our destruction on the Valley of Peace." Tai Lung unfurled his arms. "But that's not as far as your love stretches, Shen. You may not have known it till a few days ago, and we may have not known till this morning, but you have a sister, Shen. Jai: a true, blood-related sister who remains as a part of your original family. Sure she may have set thugs out to kidnap you and hold you as prisoner at her camp, set assassins on Fu and Hao," Tai Lung rubbed the back of his neck as he said this, starting to sound more disheartening than he intended. He quickly shook his head. "…but-but…from what you've told me, when this Hei Xin guy took over and tried to kill Jai you helped save her life and escape. After all she's done, you still helped her. If that's not family love, I don't know what is."

Shen sighed through his nose and looked away from his brother and up to the opening in the sky, seeing the crescent moon hanging high in the starry sky; it made Shen think of his sister. The crest fallen feline, that's what he believed Jai to be; having lost so much more than Shen ever could. The feral creature leaned forward and spread his arms out on the banister, leaning on his elbows as he crossed his legs. His red eyes never left the night sky. Tai Lung followed in Shen's position and did the same beside him, settling in for Shen to tell his side of the story. "How could I not?" Shen began with sombre expression and a thoughtful mind. "That night, she took me to her tent and told me how she spied on my life and knew of what our parents were like before I was even born. The entire truth, none of it I wanted to believe. But…also, a part of me did. Somewhere inside of me I was shouting for reality, to know everything that there was to understand. And…when she was injured I cried out her name and wanted to help her. I wanted to make sure nothing would ever harm her again. She may have been my kidnapper, but she was also my sister. After we managed to escape," Shen hesitated for a moment. His mind reminiscing about the escape; flashes upon flashes of memories. The battle at the camp, the charging men that tried to attack him Leo, Jai and Ling. The running. And then…Ling. Shen's eyes glanced up again to the moon, thinking of how it seemed so much fuller that night when Leo dropped Jai to save his friend, the tussle in the snow and the great howl that erupted from the Pure One's throat. Shen's black fur shivered as he remembered the cold feeling that pulsated through his body as Leo howled after his victorious bite on the defeated eagle. And then the sympathy; the loss and denial in his eyes as he held a dying Ling in his arms- the eagle's broken claw gruesomely protruding from his the place where the snow leopard's heart should be. Shen thought back to the mutters of words between Leo and Ling. For some reason, the feral cat kept on side glancing at his brother but could not bring himself to fully look at Tai Lung. He reminded Shen too much of Ling, he almost looked a spitting image. "….after we escaped…" He finally managed to find his voice again. "…and found refuge, Jai spoke of my true parents. They were nothing like I could ever remember or think of, but Jai made them sound perfect." A void of sadness filled Shen's red irises. "And now they're both dead because of me."

Tai Lung lifted up a paw and laid it on his brother's shoulder again. "They died out of love, not because of you. They only both wanted what was best for you, Shen. And right now, I think they couldn't be prouder of you. You have a family and have converted Jai away from a path of darkness. If I was your father I would be proud of you. But I already am, as your brother." Shen looked up from the banister to Tai Lung. He saw the glow in his golden eyes and the smile on his lips. He _was_ proud. Shen couldn't help but beam back. The feline pushed away from the banister and turned fully to Tai Lung, embracing the snow leopard in a brotherly hug. Tai Lung offered no resistance and chuckled as he felt Shen's body against his own. The spotted cat patted his brother's back. "Don't worry, Shen. We'll find Hao. And we will bring him back."

"I know." Shen's low voice spoke through his brother's fur as he held him close. "Thanks Tai."

"Hey." Tai Lung replied. "What is family for?" The pair separated as Shen gave a chuckle, the first time since the morning he had dreamt of the great white wolf. He had forgotten it all. He forgot of Hei Xin. He forgot of his kidnapping, the imprisonment. The escape. The dream. But most of all, Shen forgot the memory of the great green-eyed wolf and the foretold prophecy of his timely death to come. None of it mattered. Not in this moment. Not in these few seconds where two brothers, not bonded by blood by love shared their companionship for one another and for those who they held dear to their hearts. "Come, I think it's time we got some sleep ourselves."

As if on cue the black feral feline opened his maw and gave a well-deserved yawn. His eye lids dropped half over his eyes. "Sounds justified." Shen said groggily.

Tai Lung chuckled heartedly as he placed a paw on his brother's back as the pair of males walked along the edge of the porch to the front door. But as they approached the entrance Jai stepped out from the inside of the cabin main room. Her rubicund eyes snapped to the Tai Lung and Shen instantly.

For a few seconds none of the three felines said anything as they stared at each other. All gazes stunned with slight wonder for the same question. Shen broke the icy silence as he finally asked the question they had all been thinking. "Jai," His ruby eyes drifted over smaller lithe frame. She was dressed fully in clothes, but the one thing that caught his attention was the cloak wrapped around her shoulders. The moon shone done on something that reflected its beam; something hiding underneath Jai's cloak. Shen's eyebrows lowered but he said nothing as Jai pulled out a paw and closed the openings of her cloak together. Shen brought his gaze back up to her eyes. "…what are you doing out here?"

The lioness's stare was sturdy and solid. But her eyes gave no satisfactory to comforting a tingle in Shen's spine. The claw marks on her cheeks glistened a rosy red with drying blood. "I…I needed to get some fresh air. I need to think." She stepped through the two cats and walked down the steps of the porch. She stopped and looked up to Shen and Tai Lung, forcing a simple smile that made the sensation in Shen's spine tingle all the more. "Who knows….maybe I'll bump into Hao along the way."

Tai Lung pulled from Shen and took a step forward. He twisted his head to the black feline and raised a hopeful eyebrow. The black feral creature gave no response back but trained a stern glare on Jai. He pulled his lips to the side before answering. "Alright. But don't stay out too late; Hei Xin's men are still out there. I don't want to lose you too."

Jai gently bobbed her head. "I'll be careful, Shen. You just get some sleep. I'll see you in the morning." She waved off the two males as she slowly turned on her heels and walked out into the darkness of the forest. Her cloak ends flapping smoothly with every step as she faded in the shadows and out of Tai Lung and Shen's sight.

For a few good minutes both men stared at the space where Jai had vanished off. "Seems we're not the only ones with troubled minds tonight, huh?" Tai Lung said as he turned to Shen. He spotted the feral's constant unyielding gaze into the forest, his eyes squinting in the moonlight. "Hey." Tai Lung called.

Shen's red eyes blinked and he looked to Tai Lung. "Huh, yeah. What?"

Tai Lung dipped his head with concern to the feline. "You okay?"

Shen gave another look at the forest before he turned to the doorway. "Yeah, yeah. I'm fine. Just thinking is all."

"Oh boy." Tai Lung huffed. "That's what got us in this predicament in the first place." The two brothers laughed quietly as they walked through the cabin, splitting up at the table.

Shen padded over towards the training dojo as Tai Lung made his was for his own room where his blind wife and son were in waiting. The duo gave each other another smile and bid the other a good, merited night's sleep. Shen waved lazily to his foster spouse as he entered the darkness of the training dojo. He stood, for a moment, by the doorway and gazed over his friends and family's sleeping bodies. His feral eyes gave everything a defined shape and quality that his normal eyes could not match, even in the dark. Everything appeared as if it were in daylight. Over to his right Shen grinned contently as he caught sight of Po's large form lying on the floor, the black and orange stripes of Tigress' body pressed up against him. Happy smiles stuck on their muzzles. Looking around the room The Five's sleeping faces comforted Shen. He chuckled a little to himself at Monkey and Mantis' snoring. Those two could have easily been mistaken as pigs or boars with the sound they made when sleeping. It amazed Shen how the others managed to sleep through it. Shen's gaze came to the Grand Master. Peaceful now, as always, in his sleep. Still dreaming of Oogway, Shen believed. Leo's curled up frame in the furthest corner, the general wagging of his grey tail and twitching of his large ears. Shen chuckled as he moved away from the door, stepping lightly on the floorboards as he made his way to his rightful spot beside the woman he loved more than anything else.

Shen paused at his wife's side and crouched down. His eyes roamed over her sleeping body with a loving glance. Her watched her chest rise and fall in synch, the slight bump where her heart- always full of care and concern for others- beating softly away inside of her body. Her ashen fur and striking pattern, long ears and beautiful tail; it almost made Shen want to cry out for being not part of this woman's life during her torment. For not being there when she needed him the most. Just like how Hao needed him now. How was it that whenever he was most needed by his family, he was never around to protect them or hold them? To tell them that everything would be okay and that they would get by this as a family?

Shen sniffed his cold nose at the thought and smiled as he rose up his paw and softly stroked Fu's cheek. The lynx nuzzled his familiar touch and purred for his love. Shen's smile grew as he took away his paw and reached for Fu's cloak, pulling it up over her body to shelter her from the coldness of the night. He stroked out the shape of her figure under the cover and swished his tail with contentment.

But then his gaze looked over Fu to where Leo was. Had Jai remained indoors and still been asleep she would have been cuddled right up to the lupine with her sword in its sheath at her side encase she needed it. But the weapon was missing. Shen's brow creased with curiosity. He sat back on his feet and looked to his side where he had placed his own blade and the throwing knives Jai had given him. Both were vacant of the space up against the wall. Shen looked to and from the wall by his side and the wall by Leo's sleeping body. Shen's eyes widened with realization. The tingle sensation that had reappeared in his spine had grown into a chilled biting feeling that made Shen's back arch out. He gasped. Getting back to full height the feline literally jumped over his comrades, dashed out the dojo door and out onto the front porch where he stopped and felt like hyperventilating.

"Jai! No!" He whispered fearfully into the breeze.

Jai ran hard and fast.

The crescent curve of the white moon shone down with a curious eye as it captured the moving lioness' golden fur in an ember glow as her body flexed and sprang through the vast woodlands of the forest. The fallen leaves crunched and crackled underneath her paws; she could feel their breaking under her weight as she stepped on each one. The echoing crack ringing in her ears and mind with a horrifying meaning that Jai feared greatly. Warm breath flew from her muzzle in the form of condense clouds in the cool night air. Jai halted with a skid and looked skyward, searching the star-blanketed heavens for any sign of the great black eagle, Hei Xin.

The female snarled with frustration when she could not find the great feral bird. She yowled out her anger and drew back her ears. Her tail flicked vigorously on the floor. She knew that the avian had Hao. Though she had not seen any evidence to prove her claim, she felt a foreboding feeling grow in the pit of stomach telling her that somewhere Shen and Fu's little cub was in the clutches of the worst criminal of the era. Her nephew, her bloodline, was in trouble. He needed her. And this feeling, it wasn't something she could explain or understand, but it was drawing her in a certain direction. Towards what, she could only hope was Hao.

But where was he!

A breeze swept up through the shadows of the trees and encircled Jai. Leaves fluttered from the ground, caught in the gust of air as it twirled through the air and danced around Jai. The lioness' seething breath lightened when she felt the touch of the cold draught brush over her fur and stroke every strand on her cheek: comforting the cuts that were still fresh with blood. Jai paused for a moment as she watched the colourful fallen foliage sway around her lean frame with gentle twists and curls. Jai lifted her paws and captured one of the leaves in her paw, feeling as it landed in her pad. Jai was mesmerized. The ends of her cloak flapped at her legs as if pulling her when the fluster curved away from the feline and moved in the direction down a hollow path. The single brown leaf that lay in Jai's paw jumped high into the air and followed on with its brethren. Jai's fur whipped with her cloak ends. The feline stepped forward and trailed after the breeze, speeding up into a jog and then a run.

After a short distance of rushing through the forest Jai soon saw as the thickness of trees began to whine and a clearing opened up ahead. The breeze instantly settled as Jai took ahead. She looked up from the path and saw the materialising boxed forms of buildings growing on the horizon through the trees. The leaves were soon replaced by grass and then the softness of farming soil. Jai slid to a halt on the edge of the treeline and remained low to the ground in the shadows. Waiting and listening. Jai looked out at the opening with recognition in her stare. She was right on the edge of one of the wheat planes just outside the edge of Xi'an. The ironic thing, however, was that it was the field she trained with Chen Leigh on the day they found out Keera was pregnant with Shen. The feline's red eyes hardened as she looked on over the field to main village; the grey wall that encased its citizens and the horde of animals that now had taken reign of the village stood tall and proud. Jai's red cased eyes glared higher. Perched high atop the tallest building, like the Emperor of his own domain, Jai's rubicund orbs pierced at the silhouette of the great feral bird himself staring down on his conquered kingdom.

Hei Xin.

Jai felt a growl in her throat but she swallowed it back down. She looked over her body, checking that Shen's sword was strapped at her left side. Check. Her own dragon-carved blade at her right. Check. And the armoury of throwing knives sitting across her chest. Check. The lioness glanced up from her assortment of weapons and glared with purpose and fortitude in her eyes.

"Hang on Hao, I'm coming for you." She whispered with hope and promise.


	24. The Truth

Is Love Safe?

Chapter Twenty Four- The Truth

Leo, Hao, Fu, Shen, Hei Xin and Jai (c) mine

* * *

Jai peered over the open planes that bordered the village of Xi'an with a leering gaze. Her feral eyes saw everything with sharpness, the beam of the moonlight that engulfed the opening adding to her aid of sight. The feline's tail twitched in the shadows of the trees as her gaze settled on the main path that lead in and out of the village. The stone columns of the entrance gate glistened like diamonds in the light of the moon, but Jai's eyes were more focused on the two large forms of gorillas standing on either side of the gate; their red eyes glowing in the night. Jai growled quietly from her throat as she stared at the duo guarding the erect gateway. She pulled her eyes away and looked out over the farmers' fields for any more of Hei Xin's men. A few simple farm houses stood on the edges of the separate fields. No flickering lights came from inside of their windows, but Jai guessed that Hei Xin had positioned archers in them should anyone try to slip past in the fields. Jai's observation snapped skyward as she spotted three figures fly through the starry night sky. Their wings beat the air, eyes blazing red as their pierced the ground below. Jai sunk back into the shadow of her hiding spot as they passed overhead and flew into the distance: a scouting party of eagles searching for Tai Lung's cabin Jai determined.

Jai squatted back into the moonlight and scowled back to Xi'an, looking to the tallest building again with hatred and vice at the creature perched atop its structure. His shape, defining the great wings, folded, claws scraping at the stone building that they clutched and the feral rubicund eyes that watched over the village below. Hei Xin almost could have been passed off as a gargoyle by the way he sat still. Jai's orbs hardened and she looked back down to the wheat field that was little more than a short sprint away from her position. She searched the sky once more, then the gorillas at the gate and finally the closest farm house. Satisfied she had not been spotted just yet; the lioness took in a few quick breaths of sharp air, furrowed her slim eyebrows and moved out. She dashed across the opening like a shadow, her feet making no sound as they treaded the grassy floor and passed the fence of wheat grains.

Jai instantaneously sunk down to all fours once inside the field.

She laid there, in waiting.

Jai's ears flickered atop her head as she listened for the slightest voice in the wind or indication that she had been spotted. After a few good minutes of perfect silence, Jai released a silent breath of relief and looked through the tall grains of wheat. She could see in the tall form of the village wall and the buildings within coming into view. Along the top of the fortification wolves patrolled with slow tactical movements, all of them had bows at the ready. Jai lowered her body to the ground, feeling the cold touch of soil rub against her stomach. As she moved forward the wheat strands tickled Jai as they brushed up against her cheek and arms. A strand caressed Jai's cheek, rubbing up against the open wounds of the three claw marks where Fu had scratched her. Blood painted the wholesome wheat grain. Jai's eyes flinched at the wince of pain but she did not cry out or even give the slightest of whimper.

As she moved closer to the edge of the village wall, Jai passed many farm houses with ease. Every time she would glance up at their windows now and then, just to be sure that no one was watching her. The last of the houses was coming up. Jai was hallway passing the front windows when she stopped suddenly. Her head cracked up to the second floor window. A small gleam reflected the moon's light, it had caught her eye. The lioness immobilized herself as she stared wide eyed at the window, waiting to see what would happen. Her heartbeat quickened, thumping against her chest. Jai's feral eyes never blinked as they locked on the shining object coming from inside the house. If she had been spotted, that's it; her rescue attempt would have come to an end before it even began.

Jai swallowed a dry lump in her throat.

Her red eyes stared incredulously at the window towering above her, watching for the slightest change in the gleam. Nothing happened. Jai lowered an eyebrow in suspicion and squinted at the opening. She sighed greatly and relaxed her body. It was only a discarded button from a torn piece of clothing, left by the owner. The lioness hung her head and shook it to rid herself of the paranoia of the moment. Jai cursed under her breath and raised her head back up to the window and luminescent button. She humped to herself and pawed ahead.

With stealth-like movement Jai slipped through wheat field after a wheat field, her cloak hiding the reflective surfaces of her and Shen's sword and the throwing knives from the patrolling archers and the moon. Soon the shade of the wall engulfed Jai as she made it to the barrier that surrounded the village of Xi'an. She slipped up against the exterior of the wall and pushed against its rigid stone surface. She could feel the jutting pebbles and smoothened areas through her back and paw pads. Jai looked back at the distance she had just come, seeing the forest line far in the distance by the shrunken stone columns.

Jai took in a deep breath of air.

No turning back now.

Jai looked to her left and saw the entrance of the village. It was guarded by a group of feral felines, all wearing swords. Jai thought back to the previous morning's brawl. She, Leo and Shen made it down from the mountains of the Dragon's Pass. They had walked through the gate of the passage and worked their way down to the village of Xi'an, only to walk in and find that Hei Xin and his men had taken flight after their escape from the camp and moved down to the village, taking it by force before the trio even reached the place. Xi'an had been conquered overnight and Shen, Jai and Leo had no idea. They were immediately met with resistance from all kinds of Hei Xin's men. A small fight broke out before the new Commander landed right in the middle of it all and separated his followers from the threesome. Words were swapped, curses too, but the feral eagle eventually settled to allow Jai, Shen and Leo to pass through with a promise that he would not set his men after them. And, with some frightening ironic sense, said that Jai would return to him of her own will.

Jai scoffed in the shadows as she remembered the break in Hei Xin's promise. How he had set out groups after them, thus leading to the scrape in the woods and the unwanted clash in Tai Lung's cabin. Alone, she was no match for Hei Xin's allies. Jai glanced to the entrance again and slid in the other direction, working her way to the closest corner of the wall. Jai kept her gaze on the felines by the entry point as she moved around the corner, only to rush back around and into the dark as she almost got seen by two patrolling boars that were walking the other side of the wall. Jai grasped her chest and heaved out a held sigh. She looked around the corner with caution; the boars still came in her direction, slowly. Thankfully, they had not seen her.

Jai calmed her breathing and inhaled sharply through her nose. The feline titled her head from left to right, seeing that there was no way out of this unless she attacked either the men at the front entrance or the two boars that would eventually come around the corner. Jai slid the paw on her chest down across the pack of throwing knives, feeling their handles and the cold touch of the blades. She picked out two from their pouches.

Taking in a few deep breaths; Jai leaned her head against the wall and planned her attack to come in her mind. She lowered her head forward, and opened her red eyes. With pursed lips Jai spun around the corner and whipped out her paw holding the knives as she dropped low to the ground. The projectiles flew from her paw and lodged themselves into the chests of the guards, knocking them off their feet and to the floor with a grunt escaping their snouts. Their cries of pain did not go unheard. Jai snapped her attention up to the wall as she noticed a wolf archer leaning over and peering down on his comrades' dead bodies; he looked down the path to Jai and met eyes with the lioness. He lifted his bow and smiled evilly at the lioness.

Jai swiftly jumped aside as the arrow soared through the air and struck itself in the ground beside her. The lioness reached into her cloak and flicked a paw out at the wolf. The creature made no movement. But, gradually, leaned over the wall and fell down beside the two boars, a throwing knife sticking out from the centre of his forehead. Jai wasted no time as she ran up to the corpses, taking the two boars by the collars and dragging them into a field nearby. She returned and did the same with the wolf. Jai picked out her bloodied throwing knives and sheathed them back on the pouch on her chest before she moved to the wall and looked along its top on either side. For a good distance there was no other archer marching along the edge of the village barrier that could be seen nor noticed the space unoccupied by their fallen brethren.

Jai took a few steps back before running straight for the wall and, using her speed, to skim up its surface and climb onto the rooftop. The lioness instantly lay down and hugged the curved wall top, ensuring she was not seen. When nothing happened, in a kind of comical way, Jai slowly slipped down the side of the wall and dropped into the village, in a back alley. Her feet made the sound of a dropped feather as they touched the paved flooring.

Finding herself behind the back routes of the houses Jai silently crept up the gap between the two dwellings, remaining hidden in the gloom as she made it up as far to the front of the house as she could. From the shadows Jai looked out at the main street. She instantly retreated back into the shade as a group of Hei Xin's men made their way past; so close that the lioness could make out the fur strands on their arms and faces. She could see the new roaring fires of being feral burning inside their red orbs.

As they walked on, not unaware to her presence, Jai peered out at the main thoroughfare. It was void of all citizen life that once filled the street. Jai remembered this place as the market area from her youth. How many friends she had as a cub, she remembered how she used to run past all the stools chasing them and them chasing her. The laughter of the past echoed in her ears like whispers.

For a moment, Jai's eyes deceived her as she saw ghosts of what once was the former street and its inhabitants materialize into reality. She could see the market stools, the sellers and buyers, the children running in between; the rhythmic march of the rhino guards and the odd dash of a mercenary running with something precious in their grasp.

Jai blinked stupidly and rubbed her eyes. She opened them again and stared back at the main road. The ghosts were gone, the greyness had returned. The stools where crushed and toppled; their contents spilt over the stone cobbled road. The owners missing: locked in their houses by fear of the conquering army of red eyed animals. Jai did not bother to think of what had happened to the true guards of Xi'an, for she could see their bodies spread out along the road. Most were too mangled and deformed from attacks by the feral creatures to even be recognised as a carcass. All that remained of life was the walking groups of patrols of Hei Xin's factions working their way up and down the path.

But one thing did catch Jai's attention.

Out of all the mass of feral creatures that walked through the market square, they all seemed to turn down one particular route as well as coming out from the same turning. Jai wondered. If her memory served correctly, the place that these groups were mainly gathering was the old village tavern. Jai looked behind her and sunk back into the blackness as she silently made her way through the backs of the houses and other various buildings on the side of the street. Jai took left turning at one of them and followed on till she came to an opening in the alley ways. Jai tentatively leaned her head around the corner and braved he moonlight as she looked down the gap between the two houses. Through the opening, Jai's gaze hardened and her tail twitched with anticipation. She saw the rugged building that was considered the village's inn. The front door was guarded by more gorillas and a horde of Hei Xin's feral cohorts.

Jai was not surprised Hei Xin chose this as his head base: it was where she found and recruited the avian after he had been kicked from the Imperial army. From inside Jai's heightened hearing could pick up the sound of laughter, smashing of mugs and the general chatter of her betraying men. Jai thought of the rumours that surrounded Xi'an. She knew from first hand that the village was well known for its market trading system and the levels of crime. This was the place those criminals, who were smart enough to not cause trouble in the village publically, resided. More of whom Jai believed had joined Hei Xin's cause. A small pile of dead bodies in the corner at the front of the tavern told Jai exactly what happened to those who disagreed with the Commander and his ways.

Hao had to be in there.

Jai went to make a move but halted as she watched all of the animals immediately drop to one knee. Jai hugged the darkness again and watched. Knowing the men's abrupt action, Jai speculated that their Commander was making his way towards them.

Jai was right.

Bit by bit, Hei Xin's large frame came within Jai's view. The great black eagle stood tall over his peers with a stoic look on his face. His enflamed orbs piercing every one of the creatures that bowed before as he passed them. Jai felt the cold touch of her sword handle in her paw; she gripped its frame and pulled out a part of the blade from its sheath. Jai's gaze roamed over Hei Xin's body with disgust and abhorrence. Having not seen the bird since she had sent him off the fight Shifu, Hao, Fu, Po and the Furious Five at the Thread of Hope and the previous morning, Jai could see that the old military Captain had dealt a heavy blow. His jagged abyssal feathers were ruffled and missing in some areas. Underneath, Jai could make out the torn skin and open wounds that wept with dried blood. Jai was somewhat surprised by this, maybe she had underestimated Shen's friends and their potential. Hei Xin's beak was scratched but still held that malicious glint and sharpness; the same could be said for his eyes. Jai watched in silence as the Commander made his way into the tavern- the noise from inside ceased immediately.

The quiet sense that now hung in the air was almost unbearable for Jai. An overwhelming sense of inevitability crowded over her. This tavern was heavily guarded both inside and out. There was no way to get to Hao. It was impossible. The only option Jai had of getting to the cub was walking out of her hiding spot and giving up, surrendering to the enemy and letting _them_ take her to Hao.

Jai blinked and she sheathed her sword again.

Was that really the only option? Was it really the only way to get to Hao? The lioness could think of no other choice. If she tried to fight her way to the hybrid cub, Hei Xin would surely make short work of Hao and kill the cub before she got anywhere near him. Jai's auburn fur quivered at the thought. It was too big of a risk to fight her through. Jai moved back around the corner and leaned up against the wall, sliding down its surface till she was sitting on the cold floor. She dropped her head between her knees and brought up her paws to her neck. She gripped her short fur with her claws, raking them through every strand. The lioness felt defeated. She felt trapped, unable to do anything. She felt useless, weak. If she really was to give herself up, a lot on her behalf would be sacrificed. A lot would be given up.

But…if it meant that Hao had the possibility of being let go; of seeing Shen and Fu one more time, of ensuring that he lived to see another day and be with the people he loved and cared for….

Jai slowly raised her head from between her legs and looked up to the sky above. She closed her eyes for a second and took a deep breath in through her nose, she exhaled greatly. Opening her eyes she revealed they to be reverted back to their old honey colour. Their ember irises shined brightly as they stared up to the speckled blanket covering the black sky. A shooting star passed by. And even though it lasted for only a second, Jai saw it longingly in her mind. It represented, to her, the shortness of life, the amount of time that little Hao had left in his life.

Jai's eyebrow's dipped and she blinked, turning her eyes a feral red once more. Still keeping her gaze on the stars, Jai stood up and tightened her jaw into place. She bobbed her head in a nod and took in a deep breath. The lioness looked over her shoulder to the corner leading to the tavern. With a steeled heart and rigid body, Jai stepped proudly out from the shadows and into the moonlight.

At a leisurely pace, Jai walked through the opening between the buildings and out onto the street. All attention was instantly drawn her way. The horde of feral creatures swarmed around her, growling, snarling and glaring with furious orbs, weapons drawn. Jai looked around at all of them before glancing back to the tavern. She smiled coyly as a boar from the group ran off inside the inn, shouting the Commander's name to the high heavens.

Inside, on the top floor of the tavern, sleeping in the shadows of a small, dimly lit room, Hao's little form laid curled up on mat in the far corner. His tail wrapped around his legs, eyes closed tight, chest slowly rising and falling as he slept on the bed. His ear twitched. The cub stirred. His ear twitched again, Hao's multi-coloured eyes fluttered open from his slumber and he lifted his tired head. He woke up, hoping to find himself sleeping in the cabin of his uncle, surrounded by his mother, father and friends. But as the room faded back into focus, Hao's fears returned and he recognised the shabby interior design of the tavern room he had been thrown into as soon as he and Hei Xin landed in the village.

Hao's attention was drawn towards the wooden door of the room, from outside footsteps approached. Hao backed up on the bed, his back pressing on the wall. The lock on the door clicked and clacked before bursting open. Jai's body was thrown to the floor instantly. Her weapons had been stripped off of her.

The cub's eyes widened at the sight of his aunt on the floor. He immediately recognised her, jumping down from the bed and running towards her and into her arms. Jai gasped with relief as the hybrid clung to her body. Using one arm to prop herself up, she wrapped her free paw around Hao's trembling body. "Oh, Hao." Jai wept. "Thank goodness, you're safe." Hao tightened his grip on Jai's clothes.

"I'm sorry." He whimpered through growing tears. "I'm so sorry."

"Shhh." Jai cooed softly. "Shhh, shhh. It's okay. I'm here."

"How touching." Hei Xin's baleful voice came from behind the two felines. Jai rolled onto her back and scooted onto her backside up against the wall furthest from the door, she clutched Hao with a constricting grip against her chest. Jai growled as she glared menacingly to the feral eagle standing in the doorway. "I must say, Jai," He said, entering the room and closing the door behind him with a teasing slowness. The sound of the latch being put into place sounded like an impending door to Jai's ears. The avian stepped closer to the pair and dipped his head so that his eye level was the same as Jai's. "…this is a new side to you. I never thought you were such a softy. Didn't I say you would come back to me of your own will?" Jai raised her lips and snarled threateningly through bared fangs. Hei Xin scoffed at her warning. "Please," He groaned, raising his head and padding in front Jai and Hao. "….why try and threaten me, Jai. You've given up. You surrendered yourself to me. Just as I said you would." Hei Xin's beak stretched into a sinister smirk that made Jai's fur shudder.

"You planned this?" Jai asked.

"Oh my, yes." The avian nodded. "From the very beginning I planned to have you killed, Jai. You were never fit to rule over _my_ men. You were too weak, too insignificant to have even been considered as a leader." Hei Xin faced the lioness and reached up to his forehead, peeling back a few feathers with his wing to reveal the scab growing on the skin. "But I'll admit: you did have the potency, the anger, the strength that is hard to find in most soldiers nowadays. You even surpassed those who I trained in the Imperial army, and they were handpicked by the Emperor himself." Jai reminisced on how she slammed Hei Xin's head down on her desk in her tent when she was still leader of the group and the Captain was her follower. Hei Xin removed his wing and let the feathers hide the scab. "Now…" He continued on. "…I still plan to have you killed Jai. But not right this instant. It would be too boring to do so." Jai's paw stroked Hao's fur as the cub nuzzled into her chest. Jai glared with stabbing eyes up at the Commander. "No…I think a public execution would suffice for someone like you. That way your friends and that worthless brother of yours, Shen, and your little pet, Leo, can watch as I strike you down in front of the entire village." Hei Xin's eyes lit up with wickedness and malice as he said his plan aloud. It was almost a pleasure for him. He rose up a single claw. "And then…we move on to the big prize."

Jai's fear was quickly replaced by curiosity. "The big prize?" She parroted. Hao pulled his head from Jai's neck and looked to his aunt with tearful eyes. He then looked to the Commander.

Hei Xin hiked an eyebrow to lioness. "You still haven't figured it out yet?"

Jai was deadpan. "Figured out what?"

Hei Xin burst out in a dark laughter. It bellowed throughout the entire room and echoed down the halls of the cabin and out into the streets of the village. "Oh, my lord, all this time and you," He pointed a razor claw at Jai. "…haven't figured out my main plan. Killing you was only part of the satisfaction part of my overall goal."

Jai managed to get to her feet. "What are you talking about Hei Xin?"

The eagle's head snapped towards Jai and Hao. The lioness jumped a little at his abrupt movement and backed up against one of the walls as Hei Xin moved closer to her and Hao. His wings unfolding slightly, giving him an appearance of which covered up the entire room. "What I'm talking about," He snarled through a roguish smile at the two felines. "…is taking back what is rightfully ours. What belongs to my people! We are going to take back what is ours, rightfully, once and for all!"

"Ours?" Hao managed to whisper.

Hei Xin pulled his head away and folded his wings back into his body. He said nothing but kept smiling that mischievous smirk of his. Jai eyed the avian with deceit and thought hard as to what it was that Hei Xin meant by speaking as if he were more than just one person. As if he was an entire race or species. As if he was…It dawned on Jai. Her face sank of all its anger and hatred, her fur drained of its golden colour and faded a sickening grey. Her heart skipped a beat or two in her chest and she felt extremely cold suddenly.

"You…" She breathed, as if lost for air. "…you're not just a feral." Hei Xin's coy smile broadened as he waited for the lioness to speak the words he longed to hear. "You're a….Pure One." Hao looked curiously from his aunt to the large black eagle and back to Jai again, unfamiliar with this term. The only other time he had heard the words Pure One was by Leo after he killed the last of the attackers on Tai Lung's cabin. "You're a Pure One!" Jai now seemed to shout.

Hei Xin arched out his back and spread his massive black wings, taking up the entire room and enshrouding Jai and Hao in his large shadow as he blocked out the light from the single-lit candle beside the mat. "Now you know." The Pure One said as he flapped his wings a few times out of excitement before drawing them into his body. "All this time, your lover, your _mate_, has kept you in the dark of the truth. A Pure One can never be trusted." Hei Xin lowered his head down to Jai. "And that's coming from me." He whispered with venom.

"Why are you doing this?" Jai growled feverishly, her anger and fury returned. "You're a Pure One. You've always been the stronger kind. You lived in peace, just as we have." Hei Xin's beak twisted in a snarl. "You've always watched over us, as the stories that follow you go. Why do you want to destroy us?"

Hei Xin roared. He lifted a menacing wing and swiped the air, knocking over the side stand and the candle to the floor. The Commander turned back to the felines. "I don't want to destroy your pathetic kind. I want to _rule_ it. Once I'm finished with you I'm going to leave this village and taken my army of feral men to the Forbidden Kingdom. And once there, we will strike a blow so hard that the heavens will shake and the ground will split. And I will see to it, personally, that your Emperor is reminded of his true leaders- by killing him and his entire family. And then…after we have control of this land, we will move onto the next and the next: one by one until the entire world bows beneath Pure Ones as the dominant species. Just as our God had made us! Your kind as weakened where as we have grown stronger. Your end has come. Ours is just beginning- _augh_!" As the Pure One finished his great speech, towering over Jai and Hao as they cowered beneath him, the lioness holding Hao close to her as they prepared for the blows to come, they looked up to find that Hei Xin no longer standing over them. In his place a large bear of black and white stood; a mangled form of a walking staff in his right paw and a glint in his pair of emerald green eyes.

Hao and Jai recognised him without fail. "Po!" They both cheered.

The Dragon Warrior poised himself as he glared at of Hei Xin lying on the bed, unconscious from being knocked off his claws by Po's belly blast into the wall. Po turned to the felines; in his other paw was Jai's sword and throwing knives. He tossed them to the lioness and smiled. Jai caught them in her free paw, though she wondered where her brother's weapon was. "Hurry, let' go." Po ushered the pair as he took Hao in his own arms from Jai and ran out through the door and into the corridor. Jai worked to tie her weapons on, giving one last look to Hei Xin as she pursued after the panda through the inn.

On the bed, Hei Xin's red eyes blasted open.

As Jai ran after Po and Hao, her feral eyes glanced around the cabin to the litter of bodies that she easily acknowledged as Hei Xin's men and those who had just joined. The lioness decided not to question Po as she managed the last knot of her weapons, grasped the dragon-carved handle of her sword and yanked it free of its sheath with a metallic ring. Po's bulky form passed through the front door of the tavern and Jai was quick to follow. As the feline dashed out into street she squinted as she ran into the rising sun's orange rays. Jai rose up a paw to shield her eyes before slowly lowering it and grasping a full view of her surroundings.

The sounds of battle cries and those of pain first hit her ears before sight came back to the lioness' red orbs. But as everything came into focus, Jai saw Leo first. Her lover was beating down any adversary that dared charge at him, ignorantly thinking that they were to be able to take the lupine down. Leo swung his arm back and beat a trio of cheetahs against the wall of the tavern. They all slid down to the floor, convulsing and groaning.

Next, Jai spotted Shen. In his paws were his sword and its sheath. Well, that answered why Jai only got her own weapons. The black feline clashed steel on steel with his enemies, slicing through their defences with ease. The creatures howled in pain as the dropped, clutching their cut bodies in agony.

Po, still holding Hao in his arms, ran past the duo and made a sharp turn right, heading for the way out of the village.

And the last person, who surprised Jai the most, was Fu. The lynx had, too, a sword in her hand. It astonished Jai as she watched her sister-in-law move about the battlefield with astounding flexibility and precision. Every strike, swing and stab she made was that of a learning wielder, but with a growing aura of professionalism. Jai could only guess that Shen had trained Fu during their year together as a proper couple, should events- like the ones taken place- ever occur. Jai couldn't help but smile with some pride at the lynx. But the grin was wiped from Jai's face as one of the guards who had been watching the front of the tavern when Jai surrendered herself came head on. It was the boar who shouted out to the Commander. Jai raised her sword and spun low to the ground, the blade cutting through the pig with ease. The animal dropped immediately with an open gash across his abdomen. Jai halted for a moment as she looked down on the boar's body, thinking of what Hei Xin had told her not five minutes ago. It chilled Jai's heart to the core, her tail swished disappointingly. The female shook her head as she turned on her heels and lit into the main fight.

A few minutes later the front door of the inn burst in a ray of splinters and broken wooden frames as Hei Xin's gigantic frame burst into the street. The eagle's wings were open and his feathers quivered with anger of letting himself be so easily overthrown by a fat panda. The Pure One sneered as he looked to find his men lying face down in the stone floor, their blood flowing in little streams around him. Hei Xin's crimson eyes darted from alley to alley, road to road as he searched for Jai and her rescuers. Slowly the eagle moved along the street and turned right, looking down the main road. Hei Xin hissed angrily as he saw the animals he had positioned on the entrance groggily get up and rub their heads, dazed from being knocked out. But Hei Xin's attention was more directed to the open gate and main road leading out of the village. There came a sound of huffing at his side.

"Commander," The runner spoke. "…what happened here?"

Hei Xin did not break his glaring down the street. "A little change of plan is all." He spoke, lifting his head up above his shoulders.

"Should I send out a party to follow them, Commander?" The creature suggested.

"No."

"But….but, Commander, they escaped. They have the cub."

"And they will return." Hei Xin replied calmly. "Now that I have told our former leader the truth, she won't be able to resist another attack." Hei Xin turned his head slightly and looked to the animal standing at his side: a large black wolf with one red eye and a grey one, an ugly scar running down from his forehead to the tip of his muzzle. "Gather my army. Prepare them for battle." The wolf bowed and backed away as he sprinted off to carry out the order. Hei Xin dipped his beak and glared wrathfully out onto the horizon through his eyebrows.

From over in the background, where the purple, snow-topped mountains of the Dragon's Pass stood tall and proud, the sun broke free and set the village in a haze of blue, orange and yellow. But none of it could compare to the lustre that glowed from Hei Xin's roaring eyes, each one longing for the taste of blood in the battle that the Pure One knew would surely come.

Back at the cabin, deep within the hidden contents of the forest bordering the village of Xi'an, inside the Fu walked quietly over Shifu and the Five to her bed in the training dojo. Waiting for her was her husband's already sleeping form and her son. Fu's violet eyes were red from lack of sleep, but they gleamed brightly as she saw the little Hao's form peacefully slumbering in the crook of Shen's body, nuzzling up to his father's warmth. Fu stopped for a moment as she looked over to Po, the panda cuddling up to Tigress and slowly sinking back into the realm of dreams. But as the lynx glanced over to the opposite side of the room the small smile that blessed her lips disappeared. She hesitated for a moment. Her stare fixed on Jai and Leo nuzzling up against each other, Leo's grey tail wagging on the floor contentedly. Fu's mind wondered for a short while as she stood there, her body begging for sleep, but her heart asking for something else. Fu glanced back to her son and then to Jai again. She made her choice. Turning away, Fu padded over to Jai and kneeled before the lioness. Fu leaned down and gently placed a tender kiss on her sister-in-law's forehead.

"Thank you." She whispered with a grateful smile.

Sore from the early morning fight and tired from the drain of energy, the lynx stood up from Jai and made her way to Shen and Hao. Sliding in between her husband and son, Fu grasped Shen's paw and wrapped it around her abdomen as she used her free paw to hold her son close to her chest, feeling his body curl up against her lovingly. Knowing that her family was back together, safe and sound, the lynx closed her drooping eyes and drifted off into a peaceful sleep.

Jai's eyes batted open and she raised her head from the floor, just catching Fu as the lynx fell asleep. Jai looked over the group felines and smiled; the lioness lowered her head and nuzzled Leo with a purr, knowing, now, that she was part of a family again.


	25. When we walk the Path of Destiny

Is Love Safe?

Chapter Twenty Five- When we walk the Path of Destiny

Chen Hue Leigh, Hei Xin, Husto, Hao, Fu, Leo, Jai and Shen (c) mine.

* * *

The midday sun burned fervidly down upon the sea of pine trees of the forest, sending rays of bright orange and honey-yellow light down through the cracks and tears in the leaves and shrubs. A low, cool breeze swept across the woodland floor, brushing up the litter of brown and green foliage that carpeted the dew soaked soil.

Jai sat, nestled in the crook of a thick tree branch, looking up to the clear blue sky. There was a growing vapour of ashen clouds rolling in from the horizon of the mountains that were the Dragon's Pass. The lioness stared strongly at the clouds with her feral eyes, watching as sparks of lightning sprung from its underbelly. The thunder came later on; touching Jai's heightened ears like a rung gong. A small gust of air crawled up the bark of the tree and blew gently on Jai's auburn fur. The female shivered and drew her knees close to her chest. She wrapped her long tail around her legs for security. Her gaze never left the storm brewing in the distance.

To a passer-by the thunder clouds would have just been a warning to an oncoming harsh weather; to Jai it was much more. Her thoughts were plagued with the dark memory from her conversation with Hei Xin from earlier in the morning, replaying the moment over and over again like a record set on a loop. All she could hear was his voice, that malicious sneer in his tone, it whispered in her ear like an endless echo. How could she never have noticed? How could she have never seen the signs? It should have been obvious.

Hei Xin was a Pure One; he was born of wild animals, just like Leo.

Jai laced her arms around her knees and rested her chin on them. Her ears slowly sunk down against her skull as she thought of how Hei Xin spoke of Leo to her as if he was a betrayer. The way he mentioned how the lupine had held back the truth from her about the eagle: sure, he had withdrawn the fact he was a Pure One from her till after they had grown deep into their relationship, but the idea of Leo holding back the facts of Hei Xin just proved too hard to believe. Maybe he didn't know.

"Is this spot taken?" A familiar voice kindly spoke from behind.

Jai turned, hoping to see the wolf that she loved dearly, but instead met with the glowing eyes of Tai Lung hanging from a branch slightly above her like a monkey. The lioness looked away from the snow leopard. "Oh, it's there if you want it." She said grimly, turning back to face the storm again.

Tai Lung jumped down onto the branch in front of Jai with ease. He turned around to face her and straddled the large branch, leaning back with his toned arms folded behind his head like a pillow. "What's with the downed spirit?" He asked jokingly. "Shouldn't you be happy? You got Hao back and was forgiven by Fu. If I was in your position I wouldn't be sitting up here in the tree tops all alone. I'd be back at the cabin with my family."

Jai scoffed and averted Tai Lung from her sight, turning her head to the side and staring off with furrowed eyebrows. "There isn't anything that's worth celebrating at the moment."

"Nothing that you're not telling us." Leo's calm, deep voice said from below the branch. Tai Lung propped himself up on one elbow and looked over the edge of the limb down at the great grey wolf. Jai's eyes landed on the lupine, but held a glance no longer than a few seconds. She felt it hard to peer down at his white mask. "Can I come up?"

"Sure." Jai said, sarcasm riddling in her tone Tai Lung glared at Jai with anxiety. "Everyone seems to be joining the party."

Leo's mask hiked an eyebrow at his lover and he dropped ear in question, wondering why Jai had responded in such a fashion. But the wolf shrugged it off as he moved towards the base of the trunk. Leo crouched low to the floor and used his large legs to spring up to the nearest branch, hoping to the next one above like a frog till he was perched on a sturdy branch that supported his weight, positioning him just off the two felines' side. Leo grabbed hold of the fat tree trunk with his sharp claws. He eyed Jai curiously. "Was I interrupting something?" He asked.

Tai Lung sat hunched, still straddling the branch. "Nope." He responded. "I found Jai sitting here after coming back my routinely Tai Chi." Tai Lung's ember eyes shifted to the lioness. "I just wanted to make sure she had company."

Jai forced a tiny smile at the snow leopard. "Thanks." The female was quick to change her stare from the snow leopard.

A growl intuitively rippled from Tai Lung's throat, his lips rose a tad. "Okay, what gives?" He switched concentration between Leo and Jai with a challenging stare. "Every time you guys look at me you immediately turn away as if I'm a ghost. You try avoiding any eye contact with me and whenever you speak of this…Ling guy…you immediately glance right at me." Tai Lung brought his legs up and got to his feet. His tail swishing from side to side with irritation. "So I want to know, right here, right now, what it is about me and Ling that you guys, and Shen, have trouble with."

Leo's claws sunk deep into the bark of the tree at the mention of his deceased colleague's name. His tail dropped between his legs and his ears fell from his head with sorely. A void look of pain and loss began to grow within his red orbs. The wolf looked through his white mask to Tai Lung and then to Jai. The lioness stared back at him with the same distraught and wounded face, her ears, too, pinned back. Leo faced Tai Lung staunchly and let go of the trunk as he jumped down from his branch onto the one supporting the two felines. Towering over Tai Lung, the Pure One gazed down his muzzle at the frustrated clouded leopard with sympathy. "I think….I think it's best if we talked about this on level ground." The wolf stretched out a paw and moved to lead Tai Lung down the tree.

The feline sighed with arrogance and batted away Leo's paw civilly. "No! I'm not going anywhere till this is over. So whatever you have to say, say it."

Leo retracted his swatted paw and glanced over his shoulder to Jai for guidance. The lioness only nodded her head, motioning for the wolf to take his own lead and make the right decision. Her eyes still offered backup, should Leo need it. The wolf faced Tai Lung again and sighed immensely. "Okay." He agreed with reluctance. "You know of Ling from me telling you that he's the reason me, Jai and Shen managed to escape from Hei Xin…"

Tai Lung bobbed his head. "Yeah, when he betrayed Jai and tried to kill her."

"Correct." Leo answered. "Ling was with us as we tried to escape the campsite. He was a dedicated follower of Jai during her reign of the group, and so was with us all the way. We had managed to get to the outskirts of the campsite up in the mountains. We thought that we had made it, but one of Hei Xin's eagles swooped in and took Ling in his claws. I intercepted him and managed to free Ling after I killed off the eagle. But," Leo took in a deep breath and turned his head away from Tai Lung, staring intensely down to the ground. He wanted to stare Tai Lung in the eye when he told the kung fu warrior what happened, yet it proved difficult to do so. "…you have to understand, Tai Lung, as a Pure One I do care for those who I consider friends and such. Ling was a very close comrade of mine." The tall lupine summed up his will power looked back to Tai Lung as he continued the story. "As I finished off the eagle, Ling was severely wounded. One of the bird's claws had snapped off and stabbed him through the heart. He could barely stand due to the injury." Leo paused to swallow the lump growing in his throat. His voice was beginning to fail him. "I…I offered to carry him to safety, but he wouldn't have it." Leo's muzzle gave off a shaky smile. He sniffed and wiped his cold nose with his furry forearm. "He was always stubborn, never wanting help from others even when he needed it." The grin faded as the wolf finished off his story. "He decided to stay behind. He gave me, Jai and Shen the chance to run as he fought off a group of Hei Xin's cohorts who had managed to track us down. Once we were a safe distance away I stopped to look back on my friend. He fought hard, down to his last breath and ounce of life. I watched," Leo now seemed to growl with anger. His massive paws curled into fists. His lips rose with a snarl. "…I watched as Hei Xin flew in and took Ling by the neck, crushing his spine with one squeeze and throwing his body aside like a torn piece of cloth. I watched as my colleague, my only true friend, was murdered; giving his life so that we could run free."

From where she sat, Jai kept a careful eye on her lover as he told the story of the events that had taken place the night of Hei Xin's betrayal. Leo had told Jai that Ling was dead during their stay in the cave up in the Dragon's Pass, but she had never heard the entire tale until now. Her unconsciousness at the time prevented her from witnessing the moment, but from what Leo had just alleged, much had occurred. The lioness slowly rose from her crouched spot in the crook of the branch. She padded over to Leo and laid a comforting paw on his arm. The wolf eased at her tender touch, unfurling his paws. He swung his muzzle to her, letting her see the pools of tears that grew in the pits of his rubicund eyes. Jai wiped them away with a weary grin.

Standing next to the pair of lovers, Tai Lung stood poised. His arms folded in front of his muscular chest. He eyed the lioness and wolf with questioningly. He _was_ interested by the story that had just been laid at his feet, but the main question still remained to be asked. Tai Lung did not hesitate to speak. "Well that explains what happened to Ling in a deeper description." The kung fu warrior shrugged his shoulders. "But what does he have to do with me?"

Leo shut his eyes and shook his head, unable to say any more. Jai patted his arm and swiftly stepped around the wolf so that she was now face to face with Tai Lung. "We thought, should we ever tell you the truth, that when this story was told of how Ling died and the person responsible for his death, you would understand on a personal level."

The snow leopard creased his eyebrows with suspicion and curiosity. "What are you saying?"

Jai opened her maw to speak, but Leo's voice took over. "When I shared words with Ling before he pushed me away, I asked him if he wanted to see his little boy again. He told me that he would. He told me, one day, he would."

"I...I'm not following." Tai Lung said.

Jai stepped forward. "When you were young, Tai Lung, your father dropped you off at the steps of the Jade Palace."

"So I'm told."

"And you never really knew your father or mother. The truth is….your mother died giving birth to you. And your father believed that he wouldn't be able to take care of you. So he left you in Shifu's care."

Tai Lung slowly released his arms and let them hang down at his side. His tone was cold. "How do you know this?" He asked with a demanding voice.

"Because," Jai replied firmly, looking straight into Tai Lung's ember eyes. From over her shoulder, Leo gazed with sorrow filled orbs. "….Ling was your father, Tai Lung, your _true_ father."

The words struck like a blade through his heart. Tai Lung's greyish, spotted fur quivered with shock and surprise. His spine went rigid and his body seemed to freeze. Jai and Leo stared with anticipation at the response they had received from the kung fu warrior. Tai Lung made no movement, said no words or made no sound for a few good seconds. His entire body seemed to shut down on itself, as if his soul had just vanished and left behind an empty shell. But soon the feline moved; it started with the shaking of his head. "No…no…" He whispered with denial. "No. No, it's not true." The clouded leopard lifted his arms and stared down at his paws, looking at them as if considering they were not his own. "It…it can't be true!" He gradually began to back away from Jai and Leo. The duet moved closer as he increased the gap between them. Tai Lung snapped his paws up to his head, claws unsheathed. He grasped at his head and shook it furiously. "No! No! It's not true!"

"Tai lung," Jai soothed as he held out her paws, desperately trying to calm the troubled feline. "….take it easy. Just take it easy."

Tai Lung did not seem to hear her. He couldn't hear anything, not the rustle of the leaves of the howl of the winds. Only the words of the truth coming from Jai's lips cursed his ears, toying with his mind though he tried hard not to listen and give in. How could he believe her? Why should he believe her? She could be lying. But the way that Leo looked at him; the way he told the story, almost on the verge of tears. It had to be true. As the dubious feline dared not to listen to the words of reality, shaking his head with rejection and refusal, he did not see the edge of the tree branch that his feet were gradually making their way towards.

As if at the wrong time at the wrong moment, when people thought that nothing good or humorous could come out of a situation like this, one of the funniest things happened. Tai Lung's foot stepped back out on thin air, having reached the edge of the branch. The snow leopard's arms shot out and tried to grasp something but there was nothing to take hold of. The sudden lack of ground had put Tai Lung off balance. Jai and Leo sprung to try and grab hold of the feline before he fell but were too late. They watched, wincing as the clouded leopard dropped down to the forest floor, catching on the branches and twigs before vanishing into a bush.

A long groan came from inside the shrub.

As Jai and Leo leaned over the branch, peering down on where Tai Lung had just fallen, Jai couldn't help but shake her head. Her words added to the comedic aura of the situation and silence. "I knew we should have told him on the ground."

* * *

The rest of those who took up residence in Tai Lung's cabin had long since awaken after Jai, Leo and the snow leopard, himself, had left and disappeared into the woods. They did not bother to go in search as no one thought it necessary. Everyone had gathered around the wooden table in the centre of the main room, awaiting for the return of the two felines and lupine, as well as the breakfast that was being prepared from inside the kitchen. Po's handiwork in motion; the evidence was in the aroma that drifted throughout the cabin, teasing all those who got a whiff of the heavenly smell.

"Hey, Po, _please_ hurry up." Mantis moaned through the hole in the wall connecting the two rooms. "I'm starving."

"Don't forget about us." Crane reminded the insect. "Just wait a moment, Mantis; we haven't had anything to eat either."

The small green bug placed his head on the table and grasped it with his pincers, groaning. "Yeah..." His muffled voice vibrated from underneath. "...but it would surprise you that my stomach is bigger than my heart."

"No kidding." Monkey chuckled. Mantis glared up to the simian through his pincers. Monkey rose up his hands in a defensive gesture. "Just speaking the truth."

Sitting at the end of the table, in her usual place, Ming waited in with patience though the smell of cooking did tease her so. Little Shen was not in her arms, still asleep in his cot- out of hearing distance to the commotion of the main room. Ming's heightened ears jerked to the sound of conversation that was passed back and forth between the kung fu masters, she giggled at their childish behaviour. Though most would have found it annoying and discourteous, the blind feline actually welcomed their discussions. Due to her solitude within the hidden boundaries of the forest; she never really spent much time out in the village. And those times when Tai Lung _did_ take her into Xi'an was only on rare occasions, she still had no one to talk to. It saddened Ming, somewhat, that her social life was on the down low. But all that loneliness was washed away, knowing, now, that these people- though she would never see them with her eyes- told her heart that they would remain her closest of friends.

"Are they always like this at breakfast?" Ming asked discretely to Shifu, the red panda sitting off to her right hand side.

The Grand Master's large, trained ears, flicked up at the sound of Ming's whispering voice. Shifu glanced down to the table to his students and felt a smile crawl its way onto his lips. "Unfortunately, yes." He turned back to the cup of tea he had brewed after waking up. He cuddled it gingerly in his small bony hands. His sapphire eyes reflected in the pool of liquid. "But I wouldn't have it any other way."

Ming smiled and slid her paw across the table towards Shifu. The red panda saw Ming's movement and placed his hand upon it. The blind snow leopard clutched his tiny fingers, sending a message through her body to his. The smile on her lips told Shifu all he needed to now. "You should be proud."

Shifu squeezed back. "I am." He took another glance down the table. "I am."

Just off to the blind female's side, Fu smiled at her father-in-law as she sat between her husband and son. The lynx swung her head round to Hao, perched on a small stool at her side. The hybrid cub looked up at her and grinned as he sipped on a small cup of warmed milk. He lowered the mug from his lips to reveal a moustache of white liquid dripping from the top of his muzzle. Fu's smile widened as she reached down and wiped away the residue, before kissing her son lovingly on the forehead. Hao giggled at her touch and went back to his cup, waiting for the meal that was to come. Fu straightened in her chair and laced her claws with Shen. The black cat gripped her paw, glancing to and from all those sitting around the furniture. Though, he could not help but wonder where it was his sister, adoptive brother and Leo wandered off to.

The door to the kitchen soon opened as Po stepped into the room, a tray one each paw and an extra one balancing skilfully on his head. Shifu turned in his seat and hiked a bushy white eyebrow. Apparently, Po's training of balance had paid off. Either that or the panda just knew how to wait many customers at once. Shifu settled on a self-agreement that it was a bit of both. One by one the Dragon Warrior slipped his way around the table, dishing out the bowls of morning broth he had been slaving over the stove for the last hour. Once all the trays were empty and the table was laid Po took his own meal and happily set the trays aside, taking a spot leisurely next to Tigress.

The panda inhaled the sweet scent coming from his creation. "Okay, everyone." He announced, picking up a pair of chopsticks. "Dig in."

No one needed any other incentive; they all grabbed their chopsticks and immediately got to work. It had been a good two days since any of them had anything to eat. They had been too busy with the travel from the Jade Palace, or the battle against Hei Xin's men and the rescue of Hao from the village of Xi'an. For the space of a few days, it was amazing how any of them could fight on with such tenacity, especially Po. But one thing was for sure: it had certainly worked up an appetite. As the last of bowls were drained of the broth, set aside after a wave of satisfied sighs came from all of the dwellers, the sound of approaching footsteps echoed from the front porch. Everyone turned to the open doorway to see Leo, Jai and Tai Lung walking in. Shifu, Tigress and Fu gawped at Tai Lung. His grey fur was messed up, a few leaves poking out on little sticks. He definitely had the appearance of someone who had just fallen out of a tree and into a shrub.

Po hadn't noticed and greeted the trio. "Hey, guys. You just missed breakfast. But don't worry I've got..."

"Uh, thank you, Dragon Warrior." Leo politely interrupted with a wave of his paw, silencing the panda before he could speak another word or walk into the kitchen. "The offer is welcomed, but...I think it's best if we got some more important things out of the way."

Po's shoulders slumped and he slapped a paw up to his face, dragging it down slowly as an aggravated groan escaped his throat. "Why do I get the feeling it's more bad news?"

"That's because it is." Jai answered plainly. She paused as her attention towards those sitting around the table gave a serious stare. "There's been a change in plan, slightly."

Tigress, Shen and Shifu's eyebrows all seemed to dip simultaneously. Their eyes narrowed with earnestness and their ears tilted forward to the lioness. "How so?" Tigress asked.

Leo stepped forward. "When Hao was taken, and Jai went out to rescue him, she found out something that even I, myself, did not know. It's to do with Hei Xin."

"What about him?" Viper questioned, rising from her coiled body on her seat.

Jai drew in a heavy death. "He's a Pure One."

Silence.

Leo's ears lowered as his red orbs focused on the ground, unable to look any of the kung fu warriors, Fu, Ming or Hao in the eye. "That's not all. He plans to take over China, by killing your Emperor. Then he'll move on to the rest of the world. Your kind will not be able to stand up over his rule." He said bleakly.

Still no one replied to the wolf's murky words, they had been too deeply shocked by the revelation of finding out that the enemy they were going up against was not only a feral being, but a Pure One: a creature born of wild instincts and unimaginable power. The golden aura of the room had suddenly faded into a dreary sense of unthinkable defeat. How were a band of kung fu warriors ever going to be able to stop a Pure One? They had seen for themselves the strength and audacity of Leo in action; Hei Xin would be no different. And he has an army at his command, an army of ferals. Their numbers could match to hundreds, possibly even the thousands. All that Leo had was Jai and Shen to count as ferals.

Shifu's large ears fell. As a master he knew it was his duty to protect those who were in need, to serve the Emperor and the land for the good of society. But this...this was something else. This was beyond his students' control. He had trained them hard, yes, but they were never a match for ferals. Chen Hue Leigh was a tough enough challenge and he wasn't even fully feral. Shifu's mind flashed with images of the battle that took place up in the mountains of the Dragon's Pass. His sapphire eyes could see the snow, the blood and the bodies. Tigress. Shifu saw her dying form lying in the white ice, slowly draining of life; Chen snarling and growling threateningly, swiping at everything he could get his claws on. The brutal clash between him and Po. The wolves of the Thousand Arrows. The old Grand Master placed his elbows on the table and ran his scrawny hands through his fur atop his head. A secretive look hiding behind the blue casings of his eyes.

Crane dipped his hat to hide his face. Viper coiled her body tightly around itself. Monkey and Mantis shared looks but neither of them could muster a joke or even a simple smirk.

Tigress took hold of Po's paw and squeezed it firmly. The panda returned the gesture as he stared down at his empty bowl. His jade eyes, too, seeing the events from over a year's past. They reflected in his green irises like moving pictures. The sounds of the battle rung in his mind. For Tigress, the scars and wounds on her neck burned with a painful desire. She could feel the sharp sting of Chen's teeth tickling her fur. Her free paw slowly but surely slipped up to her shoulder, her pads running over the dips and bumps of the scars. The striped feline shivered at the touch.

Though the tiger master did not wish to say it, the words unconsciously dripped from her lips. And though they sounded like a whisper, they seemed to shout inside the quiet cabin. "It's hopeless."

Shen's jaw was set tight, his lips straight. The feral cat turned to look at his wife. Fu was holding Hao on her lap now, comforting the young hybrid as much as she was doing it for her own soothing. Her violet eyes stared off into the distance, overcome with weakness and fatigue. But in it all, Shen saw fear. He looked around, seeing the same expression in his friend's and family's faces. The terror, the dread and fright. It plagued them all. But as Shen came to rest his gaze upon his sister, seeing how she hugged close to Leo's body, looking as small as a cub, Shen's eyes hardened like rubies and he stood up. His chair scratched the floorboards and toppled over, catching everyone's attention.

"No." He sneered. "It's not hopeless. Nothing is ever hopeless." His voice was strong and stern. "There is always hope, so long as one person still believes when everyone else gives up." He gave another leering glance round to his partners. "_I_ still have hope." Jai looked to her brother with inquisitiveness. Shifu's head peered up through his hands. Tigress and Po stared at their friend senselessly. Shen moved free of his spot and made his way around the table. "I still believe that we have a chance. You know what I see? I see a band of the greatest kung fu masters in all of China." He waved an arm to the Furious Five. "I see the Grand Master of the Jade Palace and the Dragon Warrior." He stopped between Po and Shifu, placing a paw on each of their shoulders. The two pandas looked up to Shen, seeing the glow in his glistening eyes that they both knew so well. "I see the Master of the Thousand Scrolls of Kung Fu." Shen beamed proudly as he walked over to his foster brother, taking the snow leopard by the arms after he brushed off the foliage stuck in his fur. Tai Lung looked down for a second but soon brought up his eyes to the feral feline. With a waving smile he nodded and placed a repaying paw on Shen's arm. The feline moved aside to Leo. "I see a Pure One: a rare, strong creature of extraordinary potential, power, vigour and energy!" Leo's ears sprung forward, his large grey tail wagging with excitement. Shen finally glanced down from the towering lupine to his sister. He stared intensely at Jai. The lioness gazed back with wide rosy eyes. Shen sighed contentedly, bringing up a tender paw and affectionately cupping Jai's cheek, using his thumb to brush over the three claw marks. "But most of all..." Shen went on as he pulled away and addressed the entire room. "...I see a family; a family that cannot be broken no matter what stands in its way or who dares to tear it apart. So I ask you now, not individually, but as a whole: are we going to let this little bit of news stop us from protecting not just China, but the entire world from a threat so massive it will destroy everything we know and love?"

Shen knew his speech had reached the ears of all those who had listened. He knew that the words he had spoken of were factual. And so, as a Father, as a husband, a son and brother, he was willing to give his life to see this through to the end; to ensure that Hei Xin made it no further than the walls of Xi'an. He would never reach the forbidden kingdom; he would not even take one step outside the village. All that Shen waited for, right this moment, was to see if he was to fight this battle alone. But deep down, in the pit of his heart, Shen knew for a fact that he would not be alone. He knew, from his dream, that his friends and family would follow and protect him in the same way that he defended them.

And as Shen thought on his vision, he watched as Po slowly rose from his seat. The panda spread his paws out on the table, the wooden furniture groaning under his weight. "You know Shen; I've made so many promises and failed to keep them in the past. But I know, I _know_, that I am to keep at least one promise true to the end. And that promise is to stand by you, just as you did for me in the past." The panda's muzzle slipped into a cocky, overachieving smirk. "Let's just see this Hei Xin guy try and make it past us."

Tigress was next to stand. She, too, leaned on the table to support herself. A long sigh breathed from her mouth. She looked to Shen with her fiery yellow eyes. "I've fought my foes as well; just have Shifu, Tai Lung and the rest of the Five. It was you who helped save Po from death twelve months ago. And I'll admit it: you saved me as well. So I think it's in my right place to repay the favour. You once said to me and Po," She motioned to the panda aside her. "...that you would die trying to change your ways and do good." The striped cat pushed up to her full height and crossed her arms over her chest. She smiled at Shen. "I think this qualifies."

Shifu pushed his chair back and jumped down onto the floor. As he strolled up to his foster son, the red panda glared dangerously through his blazing azure eyes. "There are things you have done in the past, Shen, things that I can never forgive you for. Even to this day you kept your identity hidden from me." The black feline's ears dropped and his spirit sunk. "But," Shifu added, rising up a finger with a grin. "You are still my son, and you always will be." Shen's ear rose again, his motivation coming back into the full. "And it would make honour me, to fight at my child's side again."

Mantis hopped on Shifu's shoulder. "Count me in. It'll give me something to do since he trashed our sleep the other day."

"And us, too." Viper chipped in as she, Crane and Monkey rose from their seats.

Shen's grin broadened as each of the kung fu masters stepped up. He turned to look at his foster brother. "Tai?"

The snow leopard gave his signature toothy grin, his tail wagged. A glint of revenge and lust of action shone in his gaze. "I'm in. I have to repay that bird for what he's done to my family." Though everyone thought that Tai Lung was speaking of Ming and her son Shen, Jai and Leo understood that he also meant of Ling. "You know I'll always be there for you, brother. It'll just be like the old days."

Shen nodded in acceptance and faced Leo and Jai. The tall grey wolf beamed greatly through his white mask. The Pure One bowed his head to the feline. "This is one battle I know I must fight. I know what it means to love someone you care about. I understand the pain of loss; it's time to end it! I will be there for you Shen, just lead the way."

"And me too," Jai put in as she stared Shen right in his eyes. "I have nothing else to lose but you guys." The lioness gave a long glance over every animal in the cabin. "I have a family again. And I am not going to lose this one." The two spouses stared at each other with a stone gaze.

"Then it's settled." Shen finished.

"No! It's not!" Fu's tender voice called out. All eyes snapped her way.

Shen groaned and slapped a paw up to his head. "Fu! We're not having this argument again." Shen made his way towards his wife, trying desperately not to let his anger show in his tone, but it was proving difficult. "It's been decided, we are going to fight Hei Xin and we are going whether you say so or –_mph_!" The black cat was suddenly silenced as Fu latched a paw to his shirt, pulling her husband down on her as she placed a deep, loving, passionate-filled kiss on his lips. Shen was startled at first but immediately settled into it. The married couple broke for air. "Wha...what was that?" Shen managed to squeak out as he blinked stupidly.

"If you let me finish," Fu firmly scolded as she placed Hao on the floor and rose up against her husband. "…it's not settled until you let me join you. Jai may have put our family in danger." The lynx gave a side glance to Jai. The lioness shrunk into her shoulders a bit at the stern glare she was received. "But, she is has always been one of the family. And now that she knows the right path to walk, I want to be sure that no harm comes to her or the rest of my family ever again." Jai looked up to Leo as she was held by the waist in his large arms. The wolf raised both eyebrows of his white mask back at the lioness. They went back to watching the married duo. "Besides," Fu shrugged her shoulders. "...you've taught me well enough how to handle a sword. I'm sure a little bit more practise won't hurt."

Though the look on Shen's face was quiet comical at the time, his lips tingled with determination, powered by the kiss he had received from his wife. The black feline stood up straight. He gave his own mark of a smile and turned to the others. "Alright then: _now_ it's settled." He looked to the blind snow leopard sitting at the table. "Ming, can you watch over Hao?"

The female dipped her head. "I'd be happy to look after him." She grinned.

Though he had not really been part of the situation, the hybrid felt suddenly afraid. But it was not fear for himself that terrified the young cub. It was the images in his mind that neither his father nor his mother returned. Hao was scared of being an orphan. The young boy's multi-coloured eyes danced between Ming and his parents. He instinctively gripped at Shen and Fu's trouser legs. He stared up at the pair with silently pleading eyes on the verge of drawing tears. "Mama, Baba, don't go!" He cried. "Don't leave me!"

Apart from Fu and Shen, most of those looking on to the display that Hao were bit their lips with anticipation and anxiety. Shen and Fu glanced at each other and both kneeled down to their son. Shen drew in a hissing breath as he sat on his hind paws. Fu got right down to her knees. "Hao," Shen said lightly. "…you need to let us go. Because if we don't things will get very bad. Bad people, like the ones who took me away from our home, they will come after us again. They will try to harm me, you and your mother."

The little cub pawed his father's face, taking hold of Shen's furry cheeks. The scars on his face appeared from beneath the tugged fur strands. "Don't leave me, Baba. Do leave me alone."

"Hao. Hao, listen to me." Fu gently piped in as she took her son by the shoulders, turning him so that he faced her. She saw the sparkly tears rolling out from his golden orbs and soft purple irises. Fu wiped them away with her thumbs as she took Hao's cheeks and cupped them tenderly. "Your father and I would never leave. You hear me: we'd never leave you alone. We love you too much. But we're doing this for your own safety. We're going to leave you with Aunty Ming, just for tonight. Tomorrow, everything will be back to the way it was. But whilst you're here, you need to be the man of the house. You need to look after Aunty Ming; can you do that for me?" She cupped Hao's chin with her fore claw as he tried to look away, but Fu was determined to keep his spirits high. "Can you do that?" She asked again.

Hao sniffed and nodded with a tiny smile, jumping up and wrapping his small arms around Fu's neck. The lynx returned the hug as she felt Hao rid himself of the tears, staining her top.

Shen rose to his full height again, staring down at his wife and son with devoted glimmers in his red eyes. And though he loved them with all of his heart, it pained Shen's soul, it saddened him dearly; for he knew, from the vision that he had in the cave, of the end that he inescapably saw coming. His death. But there was hope. And that tiny splinter of optimism pushed aside all the grief, all the regret and doubt away. There was still a chance he could dodge death's cold clutches. And by Heaven above he was going to try.

As Hao wiped away the rest of his tears, Shen turned to Leo. The two males met gazes. Leo saw in Shen's feral orbs that the decision had been made, the orders were set. The only thing that remained was the time. Shen contemplated his colleagues and family who all nodded in agreement. "We attack tonight." He said, turning back to Leo. "Make the call."

The massive grey lupine inhaled with pride and smiled as he spun on his heels and stepped away from Jai, ducking his head as he walked out of the cabin front doorway and out onto the porch. Jai turned her eyes to brother, seeing the spark of life that burned within their red spheres. The energy was passed to her. Jai grinned and held her head high as she stepped out after Leo. Shen was close in tow. Everyone else, besides Ming all looked at each other with curiosity as were quick to join the trio out on the porch. As they gathered, Jai and Shen had stopped at the top of the porch steps. Hao pushed his way to the front, wondering what the commotion was all about. The entire group watched as Leo walked through the rays of sunlight, stepping over the forest floor with a leisurely stride in his movement.

"Hey," Po called. "...wh...where's he going?"

"He's not going anywhere." Shen replied, not taking his view off the lupine.

"What?" Tigress asked. "Then what is he doing?"

Jai turned to the striped kung fu warrior. "Did you really think that we would let you all go to battle without a little bit of reinforcement?"

"Reinforcement?" Everyone chorused at the same time.

"What reinforcement?" Crane questioned.

Shen gave a sly, knowing smirk. "You forget: Leo is a Pure One. Who else can he call to help?"

Though he was still young had did not grasp every concept of every conversation that took place among the adults, there were little bits of information that the cub could understand all too well. Hao's eyes widened with amazement at the very thought. He knew the answer. "Other Pure Ones!"

Leo's ears picked up every little detail of the dialogue going on behind his back, and at the mention of the word Pure Ones it filled his heart with pride at the thing that of which he was just about to do. He had the call before; the last one being on the night that he lost his parents, filled with loss, anger and hatred for those who had murdered. But now it was different. Now, it was to bring back a lost void that Leo loved as deeply as he loved Jai. As the grey lupine came to a halt in the sunlight, Leo's blood red orbs stared at the storm clouds brewing in the far distance over the Dragon's Pass. His view lowered upon the snow-covered spiked hill. With a wag in his tail, Leo's ears flicked towards the mountain range as he slowly sunk down onto all four of his paws. The wolf dipped his head low to the ground, his trained nose and predatory instincts sniffing the air and the currents of wind that twirled around him. Leo closed his eyes and listened to his surroundings. In his mind he saw his brother, standing before him, seeing the way he looked on the cliff side the night that they went different ways. He thought of the pledge that his younger sibling made, remembering the very words that were said to him. _Know this, big brother: I will stay close to you. I will lead the pack well and be near should you need me. And if you ever do, don't be afraid to howl. And the pack will come running to your aid._ The grey wolf smiled inwardly before his scarlet orbs blasted open. The wolf sucked in deeply, arched out his back, pulled back his ears, lifted his muzzle towards the sun and howled louder and longer than he had ever done.

* * *

Up in the mountains the air was sharp and cold with ice. The erect precipices stood strong against the bellow of the winds that whipped through the sky, sending thousands of tiny shards of snowflakes showering down upon the world with a merciless fist of wintry illusion. The white face of the mountain stared blankly up at the rolling dark storm clouds, taking the brute of the blizzard endlessly.

Through the curtain of falling snow and hail, in the shelter of the trees, a gathering of animals settled up against one another. The small and youngest of the group nestled in the middle, curled up on each other's bodies as they shared their body heat to battle the bitter storm the larger more older ones laid out on the exterior- these took the brute of coldness. Among these creatures of various kinds, one animal's ear flicked into the winds. The sleeping form awoke and raised its muzzle to the sky, listening into the gusts: their red eyes searching suspiciously around them. The creature's ears twitched again, this time they rose up onto their paws. Their shift of movement stirred the female sleeping at their side- a she-wolf. The lupine raised her head and stared up to her mate with curiosity.

"What is it?" She asked.

"I'm not sure." Her mate replied.

"Another pack?" The she-wolf suggested.

The larger creature shook its head. "No, it sounds too far." They pushed up onto their hind paws, standing in the centre of the group where the younglings nuzzled up, leaving the warmth of the huddle. The she-wolf lying in the snow got to her own paws, pushing up like her lover onto her hind legs. Her ears swung from side to side as they tried to pick up the sound which had alarmed her mate so much that it awoke him from his slumber. The male sniffed the air, picking up no scent of other animals nearby. He dipped an eyebrow in misperception and he stepped over the many sleeping forms of his friends till he was on the edge of the group. As the creature padded through the snow, the falling flakes dropped onto his long iridescent black coat of fur: that part he got from his father. A shabby trail of silver ran up from his hind legs, along the tips of his spine and up to his broad shoulders, where they split and swivelled into circles: a trait from his mother's side. The ashen tips of his ears poked forwards, leading him to a rocky cliff face. He was a large black wolf, a Pure One.

The lupine halted on the edge of precipice and gazed distantly into the clouds of falling snowflakes and hail. "Can you hear it?" He asked the she-wolf as she followed up behind him.

The female lupine stepped up beside her lover and looked out on the mountains. The sound was faint to her ears. "It…it sounds almost like….like a…"

"A howl." The dark wolf finished.

The female listened closely to the call in the winds. "It sounds familiar, I know that howl."

"Me too. It sounds to be coming from the village that borders the mountains." The male analysed. They both went silent for a few seconds, listening to on-going call that whispered in the air. The larger of the two wolves suddenly smiled, a grin that they had not worn for many a year.

The she-wolf looked to the black lupine puzzlingly. "What is it, Husto? Why are you smiling?"

The great abyssal Pure One puffed out a sigh of satisfaction. "It's Leo. He's calling me." He looked to the smaller wolf through shining crimson eyes. "Wake the pack. We're moving out." The she-wolf hiked an eyebrow but grinned at Husto lovingly. She understood why the leader had given his order so out-of-the-blue. Without saying another word the female nuzzled her mate and turned to wake her pups and the others. Husto watched the female lupine leave before swinging his head back out to the storm, seeing his older brother's face as he had held memory of it since they going of separate ways. "Leo…I'm coming back." And as was tradition for such a call of need, Husto took in a deep breath and lifted his muzzle to the clouds as he answered his brother's cry and howled out with a lost ache of missing the only remnants of a family he had left.


	26. One Dance, One Chance

Is Love Safe?

Chapter Twenty Six- One Dance, One Chance

Kella, Chou-Hen, Hei Xin, Fu, Jai, Husto, Leo, Shen and all Pure Ones (c) mine

* * *

The sunset was slow and bright.

As the great ball of golden ball descended upon the world, all of life was sent into a torrent of yellow and orange, setting the world into a fiery haze as the upcoming coolness of night approached. The blue core of the moon hung high in the ember sky, staring down on the world as it prepared for its cycle of giving off its luminous white light, but the bank of dark clouds that rolled in from the mountains of the Dragon's Pass boomed threateningly to cover it up, teasingly creeping in over the sky.

Leo stared coldly to the incoming storm with squinting eyes. His long grey fur waved in the winds, pulling towards the flashing tempest. The tall wolf stood planted with his feet spread out on the forest floor, feeling the crunch of the dried leaves between his toes, his back to the cabin. All day he had remained in that same spot, watching the mountain range and the storm which thundered above make its way towards him. Leo sniffed the air; a damp scent tickled his nose. The grey lupine took a few deep inhales of the smell, his predatory instincts nudging in the back of his mind; speaking in a voice he had not heard for some time. It was his animal side, the spirit of the creature he once was, calling out to him. Leo embraced the voice like a forgotten memory. The storm would hit the village of Xi'an very soon. Leo's white mask faltered no emotion as it gawked out to the horizon: he was waiting.

After he had made his call to Husto, howling endlessly with a pleading heart to hear a reply, the old wolf sighed as his naturally-trained ears picked up the friendly cry of a lupine responding. The yowl was unmistakeable. Leo knew it belonged to no one else than his younger brother. And now, adrenaline surged through his veins as he awaited the arrival of the sibling he had not laid eyes on in years. His tail long striped tail wagged in anticipation.

The Pure One's white tipped ears pulled backwards as the sound of creaking floorboards and footsteps approached from behind. Leo swung his head round to find the rotund figure of Po's black and white frame standing at the top of the stairs. Leo smiled warmly at the panda. In Po's paws were two steaming hot cups of freshly brewed tea. Po trudged down the steps of the porch and walked up to Leo, holding out one of the beverages. Leo took the cup in his large paw and lifted it to his nose. The sweet aroma coming from the tea calmed his nerves. He lifted his cup to Po in thanks and took a small sip. The hot brew burned as it ran down his throat, Leo breathed a sigh of gratification.

"Still good as last time." He complimented eyeing Po.

The panda removed his own cup from his lips and grinned. "Thanks, I thought you could use something to refresh yourself."

Leo chuckled as he took a sip. "Always thinking of others before your own, you are a true gentleman, Dragon Warrior."

Po felt the blood rush into his cheeks; he tried to hide himself in his cup, though it was already empty. His jade eyes switched between Leo and the ground over the rim of the mug. After passing off his illusion, the panda cleared his throat. "Um…L-Leo, there….there's something I've been meaning to ask you?"

Leo was midway through drinking his tea when he hesitated, his muzzle still dipped into the hot liquid. The wolf's red eyes shifted to Po questioningly. His white mask lifted a pale eyebrow as he finished off the rest of the beverage with a few quick gulps. As Leo lowered the cup from his lips, his tone was understanding and sincere. "I know what's on your mind, Dragon Warrior. I can see it in your eyes. You're thinking about tonight. About the battle."

"Well, yeah…I-I mean…sorta." The panda stuttered he cuddled the cup with both of his paws. They shook nervously. Po's mind: wondering how to express his thoughts and be held back by mortification. After a lengthy pause to end his gibbering, Po sighed heavily and stared embarrassingly at the ground. "Yeah."

Leo held up his cup to his muzzle, holding the top rim in between his claws as he twisted it around, gazing intently at the oceanic design snaking around the exterior. He gave a side-glance to Po. "Take a deep breath, Dragon Warrior. You'll find things can be done much easier when you're calm."

"But how can I be calm," Po retorted grimly as he faced Leo. "….when I'm about to go up against an enemy I know I can't defeat? Chen Leigh was hardly anything like those guys and I almost died, and lost Tigress at the same time."

"True." Leo admitted as he lowered the cup from his face. "I've heard the tale in full." Leo turned his view to the panda, a sympathetic look in his gaze. "Shen told me the whole thing." He explained. "But you managed to come out of it, didn't you? Alive and with all of your body parts?"

Po rubbed a paw up to his shoulder, feeling the missing chunk of flesh that had long since grown into an unpleasant scar. The wound reminded Po of Chen Leigh. The wolf's howl troubled the panda's small round ears as it went on like an echo. "Well, yeah. I mean, we did defeat Chen Leigh. But my memory of the fight is….kinda fuzzy. Like…like a dream."

Leo bobbed his head compassionately. "Maybe." He answered, raising a sharp claw up to Po's face. "But answer me this, Dragon Warrior, and be truthful about it." Leo hiked an eyebrow in warning. Po rose up his paws defensively and nodded for Leo to continue. "I've spoken with Tai Lung a bit, I asked him about his life after me and Jai told him about Ling, his father. He told me everything, from his first kung fu move to his marriage to Ming. He even told me about the battle you and he had in the Valley of Peace, over- what was it, again?"

"The Dragon Scroll."

"Ah, yes, that's it. And he made no lie or spoke with no shame when he told me of how you defeated him…..and then let him go." Leo's red eyes looked past the giant panda and stared at the motion occurring from inside of the cabin, shadows of the residents moved about as they all prepared for the upcoming fight that was to take place shortly. Leo's feral orbs caught sight of Tai Lung's spotted fur coat moving past the front window. Po turned and followed in Leo's line of sight, catching his old ex-enemy before he vanished behind the wall of the cabin. "He's grateful to you, y'know. He truly thanks you for letting him have another chance. But the thing that I want to ask you now, Dragon Warrior, is this," Leo slipped his free paw up onto Po's shoulder. The Dragon Warrior spun his head round to meet Leo's burgundy coloured orbs. "…what did you feel when you first went up against Tai Lung, when you had your first real battle?"

The tip of the sun was now settling into the thin skyline. Night was beginning to fall. All around the sky was draining of its colour, the last few rays of light shining blazingly on the two males and the hidden cabin. The air was growing pale.

Po brought his arms together in front of his belly, his paw rubbing the black of his forearm, feeling the bumps of the marks that were enshrouded in the strands of furs. Po inhaled the cool air through his nose. "Truthfully?" He asked Leo.

"Truthfully."

"…I…I was afraid. But at the same time I felt so excited to know that I was going into my first real fight, my own enemy. My mind was screaming for me to run like a coward, but my heart was shouting out how awesome it would be to do battle. When Shifu sent me and the Five with the rest of the valley I felt like I had failed my master and was giving in to my fear, but when I realised the secret of the Dragon Scroll I just could not leave Shifu behind to die. He's almost like a second father to me."

Leo tensed his lips and gave a glance to the fading sun. He rolled his muzzle back to the panda. "And now, what do you feel?"

Po blinked and placed a paw against the breast pocket of his waistcoat, feeling the solid form of the box containing his proposal ring and the thump of his heart through his chest. Po lowered an eyebrow in misunderstanding. He ogled at Leo. The Pure One stared back at him evenly with steady eyes, he already knew the answer. His pointy ears picking up the faint rhythm of Po's heartbeat. It was slow; steady and pumping at the normal rate. Po couldn't comprehend it, but replied non-the-less. "I feel…ready." He rubbed his chest just to check he wasn't dreaming. "Wow….that's pretty weird."

Leo chuckled softly as he lifted up the panda's paw and placed his emptied cup inside Po's own. "You once asked me what it's like to be both a feral and a Pure One." Leo reminded the Dragon Warrior, thinking back to the previous morning of when the panda had brought him and Jai cups of tea, just like he had done now. Po turned his head to Leo and gazed at the wolf's white mask. "I can only tell you, from my position, what it's like to be a feral. And the reality of it is, my friend," Leo's long lips stretched out as he grinned knowingly to the panda, settling Po's wavering thoughts. "…it's nothing to be afraid of. When the time comes, just let go and give in. Only then, will you have control of yourself. Trust me, Po." It had been the first time Leo had addressed Po by his name and not his title. The panda smiled back with appreciation as he clutched the two stacked cups in his paw. He nodded his head and turned away from the wolf, walking back up the steps of the porch. As he came to the front doorway, Po happily stepped aside as Shen walked out. The two colleagues met eyes. Shen smirked and patted Po supportively on the shoulder before walking across the porch, down the steps and made his way over to join Leo. Po watched him leave before heading inside to unify with his friends.

Leo had his back to the feline as Shen approached. Just like Leo, Shen squinted his feral eyes to the disappearing circle of light, the rim of it now slipping behind the cracks of the horizon. As he came to the towering wolf's side, Shen growled in satisfaction and determination. "They're ready." He said casually, speaking of his cohorts in the cabin. "Everything is set for tonight."

Leo twisted an ear at Shen but did not break his sight from the sunset. "Are you nervous?"

Shen eyeballed the lupine. "Should I be?" He asked back.

Leo shrugged his shoulders lightly. "I don't need to remind you of what it is we're going up against. This is unlike any enemy you've ever fought. To battle a Pure One is not something to take on a light heart. But my main concern lies with you, Shen." The great grey wolf dipped his muzzle and turned it till Shen came into view. Leo's bloody orbs danced to the cabin. His ears fell back as he leaned in and whispered to the feline. "You know what you saw in your vision! It still could come true!"

Shen listened to his associate, taking in the murmur of words at the mention of his dream. Shen could see the village, the falling of the rain, the river blood and the litter of grey lifeless bodies covering the stone cobbled streets. He saw the gathering around the single lying figure, all attention drawn down the mysterious person that seemed cast grief and sadness into everyone's heart. Dripping tears from their bloodshot eyes mingling with the falling droplets of rain. The pain in his chest; the burning sensation that tore at his rubs. As Shen thought of what he had seen in his dream, a breath of fear escaped him. He hung his head in uncertainty. The fore sense of doom lingered above his head.

"Maybe so." He sneered. The feline then pulled his head up as he stared severely at the sun. "But in my vision I could not see who it was that died, it may not be me. There is still a chance I'll come out of this alive. And I plan to keep it that way."

Leo said nothing to respond to Shen, he felt that nothing needed to be said. The grey wolf retracted his head and went back to gazing at the sundown. Staring off into the distance, Leo watched the coming of the storm clouds in the sky. But Shen's attention was fixated on the falling of the sun, his red eyes witnessing as the sky faded of its colour and grew dark in a blue haze. The sun had set. But no light shone down upon the world as the face of the sapphire moon had been covered by the storm clouds as they trundled above. Flashes of white light sparked on its underbelly. Both Shen and Leo raised their noses as the dark sea in the sky flew overhead; a deep drumming clap of thunder rumbling from within its core.

And as both men glared into the storm a single drop of rain fell, coming into a tiny splat on the dried leaves on the ground. Then two more drops went plop. Before too long, a symphony of pitter-patters cackled in the silence of the night as the rain intensified.

Twilight was at hand.

They could wait no longer for Husto.

"It's time."

* * *

It was dark.

It was cold.

The Heavens did not reside here in the village of Xi'an. There was no place for the innocent and the just, only those who held darkness in their hearts, borne of cruelty and violence: given into this world with no love in their souls, only an empty space void of all affection and adoration for anything or anyone besides themselves. These beings did not care for the world, they desired only to burn it, to watch as it went up in flames and they danced on the ashes. But all of them halted their dreams of power, for they waited on the edge of the settlement. They snarled, growled and snorted with anticipation. Their eyes glowed in a sea of red, all watching the tree line of the forest for the arrival of their foe. They had put aside their desires, now craving for the taste of blood on their lips and the sight of bodies at their feet.

The birds flapped their wings eagerly, pawing at the stone tiles of the village wall, staring out over the horde of their feral comrades. The wolves growled, their breaths blowing from their open hungry muzzles, forming clouds of warm vapour that curled and twisted before fading into nothing. Their tails all lifted, lips drooling for fresh meat. The cats clawed at the dirt, feeling it between their sharp claws: their long limbed tails swishing across the muddy terrain. The apes and gorillas smashed their chest impatiently and the boars grunted repulsively. Their multiple of patterned furs soaked heavy with rainfall.

As this army all wailed and crowded together in the rain, one of them remained silent. His dagger sharp red eyes poked through the rain to the woods. His dripping jagged black feathers ruffled all over his body, puffing up and down as he heaved heavy breaths in and out of his razor beak. His curled talons gripped the top tiles of the tallest tower. Hei Xin watched over all of his feral army below. He then snapped his attention to the woodland tree line, something was moving. The Pure One dipped his head and craned it out towards the edge of the village with snarl.

The entire army saw them. And they cried with excitement: they roared, howled and beat their chest wrathfully as twelve forms appeared along the forest edge. The uproar of the feral mass echoed with the thunder claps of the rainstorm. A flash of lightning bolted downwards in the background, lighting up the entire village in a bright white glow.

The faces of those twelve statures, positioned on the forest brink, were illuminated; highlighting the same cynical expression they all wore.

Shen's hardened rubicund eyes looked out across the open fields to the swarm of creatures that yowled in a chorus of shouts. The black feline felt frozen beneath his drenched fur, his knuckles ached against the icy rain and the biting winds. Tiny drops of water fell from the tips of his whiskers. His clothes clung to his body, chilling him to the bone. He did not care. Standing in the centre of the line Shen turned his head to the left. His gaze travelled down the line.

Leo stood poised, his claws out and looking sinister; his long grey fur sodden with water. To his side, Shen's wife raised her head high as she fiddled with the pouch of throwing knives Jai had given her. The lynx's violet orbs stabbed scarily at the growling mass of ferals. Next, Po stood poised with his staff in his paw, gripping the mangled stick tightly as he stared out at Hei Xin's men. His lengthy monochromatic fur dripped with rainwater. Ready at his aid, Tigress waited for Shen's order to move out. Her beautiful striped fur was sunk with heavy rain. Tai Lung's hulking frame stood hunched at the very end, his drenched fur quivered with exhilaration and his ember eyes scorched for a good fight. His regular toothy grin plastered firmly on his face.

They all turned towards Shen, meeting his softened face.

The feral feline swung his head and viewed the other side of the line. Jai stood ready, her right paw resting on the carved dragon head on the end of her sword handle, her thumb tenderly stroked its wet metal surface. And further along the line, the rest of the Furious Five all gazed over their adversary with an examining stare. And at the very end, Shifu's stern brown and white face glared intensely at the army, accessing them with disgust and hatred.

They, too, averted their eyes from Hei Xin's followers to the black cat.

Shen swished his head either side of the line a few times. And, for reasons he nor anyone could not explain, Shen gave a thankful smile filled with pride and vanity. The grin was contagious, for it spread quickly to all twelve of the gang and they gazed to Shen: their leader. Still wearing the smile, Shen reached across with his paw to his waist, grasping the material of his sword holder. With a firm tug and a swift motion, Shen pulled the blade free of its scabbard. The weapon sung a high tune as it was pulled free from its sheath out into the cold weather. The sign was given as Jai pulled her own sword free and Fu yanked two knives into her paws. Po spun his staff in his paw before holding it up behind his back and dropping into a stance like the rest of the kung fu masters.

"Let this day be known," Shen growled as he dipped his head and glared heatedly through his eyebrows. "…for it is the day we save not just our land, but the entire world. Let this be day be sung forever in stories by children all over the world. Let it be told to their children and their grandchildren that on this day twelve brave souls made the biggest sacrifice to protect both Pure Ones and non-ferals alike. To unify an old bond long forgotten, so it may live on in peace."

"…As it was always intended." Finished another voice.

All twelve of the warriors gasped, spinning around instantly and preparing to jump at the word go. Leo growled out of disbelief and warning to the creature who had managed to sneak up on the group from behind. He drew his ears right back and rose up his claws ready to swipe the unknown speaker, but hesitated. There was something very familiar about the voice. As Leo scowled into the darkness of the forest, a pair of scarlet orbs stared at the line of warriors. And in those red eyes, Leo brought up his ears and hushed the growl in his throat. Lowering his paws, Leo peered into the shadows, a small smile snaking its way onto his lips.

"Husto?" The grey wolf inquired.

At the recognition of his name the animal stepped out from the void of shadows. Shen, Jai and the rest of the gang stood dumbstruck, eyes bulging in amazement at the towering wolf that now stood before them. He was a tall wolf, wearing no clothes, but his long black fur, mixed with a shabby line of grey running up from his large, powerful hind legs to his broad shoulders did well to hide the skin and toned muscle beneath. The tips of his long triangular ears were dull with ash. The pair of mighty bloody eyes gave a look of a leader yet the gentle touch of a father; all these things were true about him.

"Hello, brother. Long-time no see." Husto greeted.

"You made it!" Shen blurted out, astonished at the time of the Pure One's arrival. The rest of the gang eased up.

Husto eyed Leo incredulously before he turned his attention to Shen. The black wolf growled gently through his muzzle at the feline. "Of course, I made a promise. And by the looks of things," Husto glanced out to the feral army holding on the outskirts of the village, he gave them a leering stare. A long grin curled at his lips. "…I arrived just in time."

"Well this all good, an' all." Tai Lung sneered as he gazed between Shen, Leo and Husto, throwing his paws into the air. "But what good is one more to the team going to do against an entire army of ferals?"

Husto eyed the kung fu master. His long grin transformed in a mischievous smirk. "Who ever said anything about just 'one' more to the team?"

All of the gang swapped suspicious looks about them, wondering what it was that the newly appeared dark lupine meant. But as Husto stepped aside and looked into the forest the sound of snarling and growling reached everyone's ears. Shen and Jai shared glances at each other, a glimmer of hope stirring within their eyes. For as the gang gawked back to the woodlands, more eyes of crimson faded from the gloomy mist and with them creatures slowly edged forwards. Large wolves wearing colourful coats prowled the floor, their muzzles dropped low to the ground and their lips raised to reveal the rows of glistening white fangs salivating. Behind them decorative felines poured out into the field as a steady stream; tigers, lions, lionesses, cheetahs, leopards of all kinds, there was too many of them to count up. Boar hoofs squished in the mud as they trotted out, their outsized tusks dripping with rain. Apes, gorillas and rhinos stomped their way to the front of line, grunting and snuffing out hot breaths of air through their noses.

High animalistic screeches pierced the stormy night as rows of birds dropped out for the clouds in the sky, sinking down to the ground like thunderbolts yet landing with grace that their claws made no sound as they touched the squishy floor. The great avians' beat their massive wings frantically, showing off their striking feathers before folding them into their bodies as they wavered from claw to claw anxiously.

Leo looked out on the large quantity of animals he had once leaded on as alpha male, this was once his pack. But that was a long time ago, now it was Husto's pack. It was even to Leo's surprise that the numbers of the pack had grown, among the familiar faces of his old friends, the grey wolf spotted creatures of whom he had never met before. All these animals, both male and female alike, were here to his cause. To aid their once great leader in his time of need. Shen, Jai and the rest of the others were in too much of a stunned bewilderment to say anything, for they had never seen so many Blood Knights at once.

No.

These weren't Blood Knights, that name no longer suited the courageous predators that stood amongst them. They were a proud race. A true symbol to what every living being on the planet once was.

They were Pure Ones.

Leo laughed with powerfully at the army he now had at his side. But one thing did not slip the old Pure One's notice. Leo gave his younger brother an arched eyebrow from his mask. "Where's Kella?" He asked. Kella was the alpha female of the pack, Husto's mate.

Husto motioned with his head back into the woods. "She's with the other members of the pack who cannot fight and the cubs, safely hidden deep in the woods. All those who could fight stand with you now, brother. We are under your command."

Leo grinned profoundly at his younger sibling. So many years apart and nothing had ever changed. Husto was still loyal to Leo both as a follower of the pack and as a loving brother. It warmed his soul. "I am glad to see you have returned, Husto. But this is not my battle to lead." Leo moved to the side and waved a large paw towards Shen. "It is his."

Husto had known his brother all his life before their separation, it was clear to him when the older wolf was humouring him or nor not. This time, he was serious. Husto stared into Shen's feral eyes and was only met back with a friendly gaze of trust and keenness. Husto grinned; it was almost like looking in a mirror. "Lead the way, Shen."

The black feline nodded in thanks to the great dark lupine as he turned around and faced the immense army awaiting him on the other side of the meadow. Their uproar had now turned into a booming chorale of angry shouts and challenging hollers. Hei Xin's army lusted for blood. So blood they would be taste. Gripping the handle of his sword with a constricting grip, Shen tightened his jaw and pursed his lips. His feral eyes were ablaze like infernos, highlighting the scars running diagonal across his face. The feline squinted his eyes and paused for a second. Shen sheathed his sword. Everyone eyed curiously. The furry cat glowered at the eagle perched high in the village.

"Hei Xin is mine." He snarled.

A flash of lighting struck the earth, everything went white.

Shen opened his mouth a let out a vicious roar before his body dropped to the floor onto his front paws. The mud squished between his claws as he crawled forwards. His large tail swished back and forth in time with the rise and fall of his shoulders. His pace was slow and controlled. Following in his lead, Leo and Husto gave each other one last glance before they too sunk to their front paws. Their tails rose into the air and their ears pinned down against their skulls as they followed in Shen's footsteps.

Jai watched as her brother crept forward with her lover and Husto in tow. The lioness had never given into herself before like Shen and Leo did right now, but for the first time, she saw that this moment at hand called not for her to run into this battle a civilized woman, but to sprint in like the animal she was: as her Pure One ancestors had done so in the past. Jai straightened her lips and sheathed her sword back into its scabbard. The lioness drew in a deep breath and braced herself as she slowly crawled onto her front paws and snarled at the enemy on the other side of the battlefield. She joined the three males at the front of the pack.

Fu had never seen this side of her husband before, it was something of completely paranormal sense to her. It only confused Fu more as she watched her sister-in-law link with Shen as they moved out onto into the open. But, deep down in her heart, Fu felt it natural. She felt the need, the urge to fight like her husband. It was the right thing to do. Giving into her desire, Fu pocketed the two knives back into their pouches as descended into her ordinary cat form, claws unsheathed. One by one each of the twelve warriors set out from the safety of the woods. Tigress and Tai Lung did the same as Shen, Jai and Fu, crawling out on all four of their paws. Po was hesitant but slipped his staff through the collar of his waistcoat as he gave his signature little-lost boy smile and copied his lover. The Pure Ones were unhurried as they trailed behind their leader. Those with wings took flight into the thunderous sky, flapping their wings as they gained altitude. Crane took the front at the tip of the swarm.

From on the other side of the field, a feral black wolf with an ugly scar running down his left visionless eye to the tip of his muzzle, watched as Shen and his cohorts moved towards the village. The name of the shadowy wolf was Chou-Hen: a title he had chosen himself after disserting the one his parents had bestowed upon him as a pup. The new General of Hei Xin's feral army zoomed in with his good eye at Shen and Leo. Chou-Hen growled deep from in his throat, he loosened his shoulders and cracked the bones in his neck, slackening his muscles as they carried the weight of Leo's old swords on his back. Chou-Hen could not wait to try them out.

The slightly-blind lupine smiled a toothy grin as he lifted a paw into the air and signalled to the sky. All of Hei Xin's eagle and other avains spread their wings and squealed delightedly before they jumped from the wall of the village and swooped into the air. They over flew the army and soon became but tiny silhouettes amongst the clouds. Chou-Hen brought his gaze down from the clouds. The lupine took in a deep breath of freezing air as he arched out his chest, lifted his muzzle to sky and howled against Shen's call for combat. All around him, other wolves swayed their heads at the call; felines roared with passion, apes and gorillas bellowed as they drummed their chests. Chou-Hen snapped his head back down to the field, and as the wolf lowered himself onto his front paws the army of the ferals advanced at a tantalising pace in his wake. Hei Xin watched the scene unfold from his tower.

Slow at first either side snuck towards each other.

The rain slashed at their faces and the winds bit at their skin.

They increased their pace to a moderate trot.

The Heavens boomed intensely, striking the village with bolts of silvery lightning.

The opponents now ran. Their bodies hurtling across the field, the rain sliced at their fur.

And as Shen watched his rivals come nearer, the world slowed down around him. A single thought passed through his mind, something that he had heard Tigress and Po say together one morning's rise in this very village. One dance, one chance. The sounds of the earth dimmed into a hush. All he could hear was the measured pant of his breath and the steady beat of his heart inside his chest.

Tum-tum, tum-tum.

Tum-tum, tum-tum.

Then silence fell.


	27. Dirty Dancers

Is Love Safe?

Chapter Twenty Seven-Dirty Dancers

Keera, Chen Hue Leigh, Hao, Husto, Hei Xin, Fu, Chou-Hen, Leo, Jai, Fu and Shen (c) mine

* * *

With a thunderous boom the storm clapped its mighty hands, sending a spark of white lightning down upon the land at the foot of the Dragon's Pass. The village of Xi'an was cast in a blinding glow, and as the two sides of the battlements came face to face on the muddy battlefield, the light faded and the cover of the tempest clouds set everything into a gloomy darkness.

The tips of the armies met.

Shen let out a massive roar as he pounced from the ground with force by his hind legs and shot himself straight for Chou-Hen. The one eyed wolf leapt up to meet him. The two leaders collided with burning eyes of crimson as their bodies became entangled in a blur of black and red. As they landed and rolled around in the muck of the damp soil, their claws and fangs glistened with water as snapped furiously for each other's neck. It was done with merciless malice.

Though it had been a long time since he had given in to the pure spirit of his animalistic side, Leo joined at his brother's side as they both kept on running into the front lines of the feral army, right into them. Knocking all kinds of Hei Xin's soldiers out of the way with their muzzles, or trampling them beneath the huge paws they drove on and on into the heart of the militia; a rippling effect- like the kind seen when a boats passes over the water- left in their trail. They were driven by what was either a long time urge for bloodshed, or sheer craziness.

Jai saw the holes in the front lines that both Leo and Husto made when they charged in. The lioness gave a devious smirk as she pushed up onto her hind paws, and still running for the enemy, Jai reached across to her sword and pulled the long blade free from its scabbard with a ringing song. Yelling at the top of her voice, Jai stopped her paws in the mud. Thanks to the rainwater making it slippery, the female ducked as she slid over the surface. She raised her blade horizontally at waist height and allowed the propulsion of her sprint to allow the blade cut through the stomachs of Hei Xin's men.

When she came to a stop, swordsmen and other wilders of weapons changed their direction and made for their old Commander. Jai growled as they approached, and so went back into her eccentric dance of slicing and thrusting. One by one the betrayers of her clan fell. Fine mists of blood sprayed through the shower of rain as her blade cut into flesh, speckling her face as she continued to smile on.

For most part of the day that wasn't spent training for this moment, Shifu had gathered up everyone and had laid out a, somewhat, safety precaution to ensure that everyone came out of the brawl alive. It had been agreed that Shen, Jai and Leo would take care of themselves as they had the feral capability to take on Hei Xin's men easy. As for the rest of the kung fu warriors, including Tai Lung and Fu, the plan was to leap into the mass of ferals, form up a ring back-to-back and use each other's weakness and strengths to fend off any who dared to advance.

But as Tai Lung came to the beginning of his revenge, the snow leopard saw fit to go on his own path. Though he had accepted Shifu's idea, all thoughts were removed from his eyes and mind apart from the cold hunger for vengeance. It hung on his tongue, and Tai Lung liked the flavour. Pulling from the ranks of the pack, Tai Lung wavered off and went ahead of the other kung fu masters as he leapt up into the air. In a perfect arc the clouded leopard flew and dived fists first into the sea of soldiers with his famous cry. He disappeared instantly.

Shifu had anticipated that Tai Lung would not followed orders according to plan. He wasn't even a student of his anymore, but the love for Tai Lung as a son burned deep within Shifu's heart. He witnessed the vanishing of the snow leopard among the mass, and cursed beneath his breath. Focusing his attention back to the primary task at hand, Shifu took lead of Fu and his pupils as they gave a simultaneous bellow and hurled themselves over the front wave and behind enemy lines.

Those who followed in Hei Xin's rule paused and looked up curiously to the seven fighters. They were all met by a delivery of kicks straight into the centre of their foreheads, the power of plantation from each foot so potent it killed on contact. As they all landed in the muck, Shifu looked up through his cold sapphire eyes to the creatures that saw the warriors' entry and drew their weapons for the attack.

"Knuckle up!" The red panda barked as jumped up and kicked a wolf in the chest, pushing off so that he landed precisely on the edge of the ring that had now been formed. Po reached over and pulled his staff out of his waistcoat, holding it steady in his two paws. Fu prepared herself for the kills to come as she ripped out two throwing knives and grasped them in her paws. She slid down into a stance that Shifu had shown her suitable for her weapon choice. The rest of the gang dropped into their signature stances too, and as they did so each fighter paused to have a look at one another.

Po regarded Shifu and Fu, as he was positioned between them, coolly. All of the kung fu masters, aside from Fu, adopted a simple smirk and said as one the Dragon Warrior's famous words. "Get ready to feel the _thunda!_" The ferals moved in. The warriors steeled their hearts and got ready to kick some serious _bootaey._

At the front, the first lines of the pack and army clashed in a melody of snarls, howls and roars. And as the Blood Knights and ferals attacked one another, they turned what was once a purified land of simple crop fields into the most violent and fierce battleground that China had not seen for many a generation.

Up in the darkness of the clouds, the two sides of the aerial divisions crashed with symphony of squawks, shrieks and squeals. Birds became tangled as talons pierced and tore. Birds flew up and down, left and right, making moves that those on the ground could only ever dream about. They soared through the air, giving chase or fleeing in fear. Eagles, hawks, cranes, all kinds of vicious birds battled in the sky: their dead bodies dropping to the land below and landing with a sickening crush of bones and innards.

* * *

Jai ducked to a knee as she pulled her dragon sword in a sideways motion, the blade running through the torso of a largely tusked boar. The pig squealed in agony as his stomach was sliced in two, grasping his abdomen in a desperate attempt to keep it all inside his body. Jai moved up onto her feet and dashed forward to a wolf but was shoved back by a kick to the chest as the lupine anticipated her. Jai stumbled back and came to an abrupt stop. The lioness wheeled round and raised her sword, the animal she had bumped into prepared its claws.

Both animals ceased instantly when they gazed at each other's muzzle. "Husto?"

"You," The Pure One whispered. "….you're the one Leo keeps talking about."

Their faces then fell in shock and they motioned past each other. "Look out!" They shouted. The two fighters recognised what was meant by their simultaneous holler as the spun round. Déjà vu. Husto brought down is large paw and slashed three fine marks down on the face of a monkey, the simian blew out a spray of blood as he tried to deal with shock the unexpected counter-attack. Overcome by the sense so much that he collapsed to the floor, lifeless.

Jai added a little pizazz in her stroke as she coiled up with a jump and sliced upwards. As she landed the lioness saw the still form of the wolf who had kicked he standing a few inches from her spot, a straight red line cutting up from his waist to his neck. Jai humped to herself as she gave a short roar and finished the assailant with a quick slit of her blade across the front of his throat.

Done with their surprise attackers, Jai and Husto placed their backs against one another and faced out in opposite directions. Jai held out her dragon blade in both paws. "So," She said. "…Leo's told you about me, huh?"

"Yep. He just told me a moment ago before we got separated."

Jai's ears perked up in interest and she turned her head round a little. "Is he alright?" The concern was etched within her tone.

Husto delivered a straight punch to a feral lynx's chest, crushing the ribs and puncturing the heart in one blow, an instant kill. The black wolf laughed heartedly. "Last I saw he was wearing that stupid grin of his as he lit into the crowd." The two circled, pushing up against each for support. "Is it true?" The Pure One asked eventually.

Jai managed to hike a questioning eyebrow as she raised her sword, blocking a strike from a feral tiger. Bumping up the feline's arms with a jolt the female took her opportunity with the opening she needed to drive the point of her sword straight through his heart. The canine howled in pain and buckled to the floor. Jai leaned up against Husto again. She finally caught her breath. "Is what true?"

There was a pause. "That you and my brother are mated….?"

As flash of lighting painted the sky, and the land was brought into a few seconds of white.

Darkness eventually faded again.

Jai stifled in her poised movement. The blood rushed to her cheeks so fast that it almost made her head spin. She lowered her sword slightly and gained interest in the muddy floor. The raindrops poured down the back of her neck fur and spine. It chilled her, but the heat in her cheeks was still too much. Jai was glad that Husto could not see her face, for she would have died of embarrassment. Or was it pride?

"And what if we are?"

"Well," The large wolf began as he grasped a leopard by the neck and slammed the cat into the sludge, splattering his muzzle with the muck. The force of the smash had fractured the spotted feline's spine. "…if a Pure One and normal animal, such as yourself- feral or not- mate, it is said that they will create the most powerful cub, or _cubs, _this world has ever seen. A hybrid species like no other."

Jai could not believe what she was hearing, it seemed too impractical to her. How could a wolf and lioness like her and Leo ever create such a cub? A hybrid in more ways than one? It was unbelievable. Yet, as the female gazed off into the distance scenery of her mind the flashes of Chen Hue Leigh and Keera, her mother and father, appeared. But then they morphed, taking the shape of her and Leo: a wolf and a lioness. It amazed Jai. Her parents created her and Shen, was it her destiny to carry on that tradition- if that is what it could be called? Was it in her blood and that of her brother's to be super creatures, to be more than just normal?

Coming back into reality, Jai found it no longer mattered. If she really was pregnant with the foreseeable future of both Pure Ones and non-ferals alike, then all that signified was making sure she and Leo- wherever he may be- got out of this alive, for the sake of her cubs to come. She didn't think, she knew. The lioness smiled a grin that she had not worn in so long that her cheeks ached from the strain. "We_ are_ mates." She acknowledged. The secret of her relationship no longer needed to be kept it hidden, and it felt good to release out. It felt really good.

Though she could not see the proud smirk on Husto's muzzle, the wolf felt obliged to say what had to be said. "Welcome to the family….."

This moment almost seemed perfect for the wolf and lioness, but given the current situation that they found themselves in, it could only be interrupted by one way or another. "Coming through!" Tai Lung's voice warned from the side. Jai and Husto turned their heads and pulled apart as the spotted leopard came rumbling through. He had he firm hold on the shirt of a white tiger, holding the striped cat back from sinking its fangs into his skin. They landed between Jai and Husto, only to resume their rolling about back into the crowd, disappearing again. But not before Tai Lung's distant voice apologised. "Sorry!"

As Jai and the Pure One came back together and watched the two wrestling cats roll off. The duo couldn't help but blink stupidly and stare at each other blankly.

* * *

Somewhere else among the chaos of the battlefield, Shifu and the gang continued to fight on courageously against the overwhelming opponents and odds that swirled around them like sharks. Each one of them fought on endlessly against each wave of Hei Xin's men.

And, out of all the circle of fighters, none of them was neither more scared nor enjoying himself the most than the Dragon Warrior. Po moves flowed through him like a river as he and his staff worked as one being to fight off the ferals with a grace and beauty the he had long since grown accustom to. It was a mixture of professional kung fu twisted and dazzled with the limitless ideas of his imagination. Having watched him grow into an adult and live up to his name of the title beseeched to him, Shifu though humbly of the panda at his side as they worked in unison; moving about the ring to blow away any ferals who approaches. For only a year's work, much had been accomplished for not just the two pandas but for all the Five. And it showed.

"Batter up!" The panda shouted with a mischievous grin as he saw an ocelot running right for him. The monochromatic bear spread out his feet in the sludge and waited patiently in the rain as he gripped the very end of his staff like a bat. With a comical appearance Po stuck out his tongue in concentration and set his jaw. When the feline came into reach, Po swung his shoulders and the staff came with it. With a hollow bonk sound the feral was smacked off his feet and sent into incapacitation as he spun backwards into the mud.

"Strike one." Po cheered.

His ear twitched and he swung his nose round to see a wolf dashing forwards. Po adopted the same approach as before and let swing of his stick. The wolf got it on the chest and was driven back from where he came.

"Strike two!"

The panda spun round for his final blow but was dealt a heavy punch to the nose by another wolf. The power following it sent Po careering across the floor and makeshift circle, taking Tigress off her feet as they were both hurled into the horde of the battle.

Po landed on his back with a groan, a small line of blood trickling down his muzzle and mixing with the rain. "Three," He moaned. "…I'm out."

Shifu watched as his two prized students were banished from the ring, jeopardizing the barrier and allowing Hei Xin's men move in. Shifu snarled as he ran up the body of the wolf who had deal the blow and condemned the lupine to an upper cut followed by a backspin and a kick to his lower jaw, dislodging it. Though the master did not end it there, for as the wolf was driven from the ground Shifu spun and kicked to the wolf's chest, doing the same thing that was done to his pupils.

Back on the feet Shifu whipped his head round as his eyes searched the crowd. "Po! Tigress!" There was no sight of them.

As Po rolled onto his front and wiped the crimson liquid away with his forearm he lifted his head to see Tigress getting up with her arms. Po's jade eyes cracked above her, seeing a cheetah heading right for her, a deathly look in its red eye.

"Tigress! Watch out!" Po warned, as he scrambled to his feet. Tigress gasped as she turned her head and lifted an arm defensively as she saw the advancing feline with his club. But as the cat brought down its weapon a sudden goofy look replaced its feral anger, mixed with befuddlement and confusion as it was blasted aside by Po's large stomach. The Dragon Warrior grimaced at the cheetah before looking down to the striped feline sympathetically. And as he stared down on her in the mud, half of her beautiful fur covered by the brown sludge and the rest matted down with rainfall Po made up his mind. He tightened his lips, the corners pulling into a smile as he took Tigress' arm and lifted her effortlessly to her feet again.

Though not letting go of her. "Tigress," Po said as he pulled her face near to his own. "…will you marry me?"

As the words registered in her ears, Tigress became too stunned to speak. For a moment her mouth hung open dazedly, not knowing what to say. Po was starting to get anxious. His eyes widened as he looked into the reflection of Tigress' ember orbs and saw an ape with an axe coming in for a sneak attack. There also came a bark from a wolf rushing up behind Tigress. The striped feline was brought back into her body as her ears pulled to the oncoming wolf.

For some reason of not letting go of Po's paw, Tigress whipped round and drove her knuckles into the lupines chest. The wolf whelped and convulsed for air as he released his sword to the ground. Tigress saw the weapon and, with the flick of her heel, lifted the sword up and into her paw.

Po turned round and swung his staff out low to the ground. The ape's feet were swept beneath him and he fell onto his back, dropping his axe that plunged into his chest on a stroke of bad karma.

Done the two faced each other again. "Po, I-I…I don't think now is the best time!"

They separated as a lynx came leaping through with two daggers in his paws. The panda and tiger leaned back as he slipped past. The small feline was quick to flip onto his feet and charge at the pair. Po slammed the end of his staff down on the lynx, pinning it as Tigress finished the job with a slice across the chest of her sword. They let go of one another's paws and went on fighting.

"We may not have another time! I've been holding back for so long, and given up so many chances I'm sick of waiting!" He brushed aside a leopard's sword with his staff and grabbed hold of its shirt and pulling its face close so Po could beat its muzzle in with his knuckles. Having crushed his kill to death, Po released the cat and dashed over to Tigress as she ended another of Hei Xin's assailants. He took her paw again and pulled so that she came inches within his muzzle. "I love you." They stared into each other's eyes. "I've made my decision: I love you, Tigress. Now what's yours?"

Tigress swallowed the lump in her throat. She felt hot, under the pressure of the most important question she would ever be asked in her life. For a few seconds everything around the two pairs ceased to exist, it all faded into a blur of shapes they couldn't care less to define. Tigress ogled Po's dancing emerald orbs. Soon a word murmured from her lips. "Shifu."

"What…?" Po questioned.

"Shifu!" She said more clearly. Po's face was deadpan. The battle faded back around them. Tigress looked about frantically as she searched for the Grand Master, soon seeing his small brown and green robe among the legs of the fighting Blood Knights. She grasped Po's paw. "Shifu!" She shouted, pulling the panda as they shoved their way back to the ring and into the centre. At the sight of his prized students, Shifu released a held sigh of relief. "Shifu," Tigress said as she and Po moved into the centre of the ring. The Dragon Warrior's eyebrows were sill dipped in confusion. "…marry us!" Po's mouth fell to the floor.

Though it was not the words he expected to hear after his daughter and the Dragon Warrior managed to return alive, the red panda pounced up and delivered a spinning kick to a hog's cheek. "What?" The boar spun to the floor, incapacitated.

"Marry us!" The couple parroted.

Shifu hesitated. "Marry them!" Fu and his students chorused, more demanding than encouraging.

The Grand Master glared past Tigress and Po to the ring of kung fu masters but snapped his head the other way as he darted across the floor and ran up onto a gorilla's back, holding at the collar of its shirt. The brute dropped its spear and lifted its large hands above its head as it tried to reach for Shifu. "I'm a little busy at the moment!"

Po shut his jaw and pushed Tigress aside as he rose up his staff to parry a blade from a swordsman. The panda hunched forward so the tip missed his stomach and then arched out his back and made his famous belly blast out on the feral. The animal was sent flying through the air. Po was beginning to grow impatient. "Shifu, _NOW!"_

As Tigress was pushed away, her ears twitched at the sound of a yowl coming up from behind. The female rose up the sword behind her back and blocked the attack. She lifted up her other arm and elbowed the attacker in the nose. She then spun round and cut Hei Xin's soldier across its face, silencing its moans it made because of a broken cartilage. Shifu jabbed his fingers into the ape's neck, paralysing nerve and chi points. The gorilla froze and began to topple forward. Shifu jumped of its back and rolled back into line of the ring.

"Fine then." He sneered. "Close up!" He ordered, backing into the centre of the halo so that Fu and his students could close the gaps up once Tigress and Po rushed inside. The panda took his lover by the waist, holding her up against his body so that her back was pressed against his chest. Tigress placed her own free paw on top of Po's. The tiger could feel the warm ragged breath of the panda tickle her wet neck fur. She smiled and gripped his arm tightly as she brushed her tail up against his leg affectionately. Shifu saw the spectacle of it all but ignored the idea of pulling them apart, they were getting _married_ just now. He decided to start the unorthodox ceremony; his ears and eyes still keep a weathers gaze about any of Hei Xin's followers. "Dearly beloved we are gathered here today- _hiya!" _The red panda lashed out sideways with a flat palm of his bony hand, striking a wolf in the gut who had managed to slip past the barrier of the ring. The lupine hunched over and wheezed out air. Shifu swiftly paralysed the wolf with a karate chop on the collar region. The animal went limp. Tigress and Po looked down on the body and then to each other. They shrugged their shoulders. "….to join this man and woman together in holy matrimony._"_ A flood of Hei Xin's followers charged came to the right of the circle. The sage Grand Master groaned as he leapt out of the ring and onto their bodies. "Carry on your parts!" He bellowed.

Tigress and Po grumbled as they rolled their eyes at how the service was going, but they went along and decided to take matters into their own hands.

"Tigress," Po said. The feline turned around clasped her claws in Po's, facing him. "…do you take me to be your husband?"

The feline grinned and almost giggled like a little cub as she stared into the eyes of her spur-of-the-moment-fiancé. "I do."

The panda's lips hung loose in astonishment for a few seconds. "Awesome!" He looked up over her head. "Watch out!"

Tigress grunted in annoyance as she used her burrowed weapon to cut down another one of Hei Xin's cohorts. The striped feline ducked her head and swiped the blade for her adversary's shin, sending them into a flip to the ground. Tigress hastily stabbed the creature through the chest and ended its life. She pulled the blade free as Po danced in a spin and whiplashed out to three foes at once. The velocity of the staff caused all of their necks to twist and break- killing them.

As he came to a stop and shook the dizziness from his head of the spin, Tigress took his paw in own. "Po Ping, do you take me to be your wife?" The panda gripped Tigress' paw as he spun her around like a ballerina so that her back lay on his chest. Now facing the same way as Po, Tigress saw the two tigers waving their maces wildly at the couple. Po used his staff to block both hammer-downs. "In sickness and health," Tigress continued on as she swished her blade and chopped the felines in half. "…with health being less likely, given our situation?" Holding onto Po for leverage the female kicked out both her feet and planted two direct kicks to the tigers' muzzles.

At the given chance of their spare time, Po reached around Tigress' neck and dove into the breast pocket of his waist coat. He felt the small box against his claws and picked out the case, holding out in front of Tigress' face. As Po leaned into Tigress' ear, nuzzling her cheek he lifted the lid with his thumb. Tigress gasped and her honey coloured eyes expanded as she gazed at the magnificent golden ring sitting perfectly erect in the cushion. Tigress lifted up a shaky paw around the box, never letting the halo shaped jewellery leave her sight. Her eyes became glassy, but she did not care.

"I do." Po whispered in her ear as he plucked the ring from its seat, casting the box away as he took Tigress' paw in his own and guided the ring onto her finger. It was a perfect fit. Tigress lifted her paw up to the sky, and Po watched with a satisfied stare. He did not mind the water as it splattered onto the smoothened surface. It felt right to just let be.

But the ceremony was not complete.

Shifu landed on the chest of a tiger. He stuck out his stiff fingers and penetrated the chi points on the feline's heart, ceasing it to beat and killing him in a way that most could only imagine. As his naturally enhanced hearing picked up the conversing between Tigress and Po, Shifu flipped back into the ring barrier. "As Grand Master I now pronounce you husband and wife." Viper sprang up and Shifu straightened out his arms as he allowed her to run along his shoulders to jump off, curl up and lash out like a wound coil to an ocelot. "You may kiss…" Shifu saw an ape overpower Fu, holding by the neck. The kung fu master dashed through the ring and slid beneath simian and sent his foot up against into the feral's groin. The ape released the female and let out something between a wail and girly cry as he cupped his nether regions. Fu grunted as she impaled the primate's neck with a throwing knife. Blood spurted like a sprinkler as the simian dropped to its knees, clutching his throat as his eyes rolled into the back of his head and he collapsed face down in the mud.

Po reached up and took Tigress' paw, feeling the proposal ring against his claws as he held her. The feline turned and Po pulled Tigress close to him. Their lips inched in.

But just before they met, Po's notice snapped up as he saw a boar come in with his horns levelled to strike. The panda yanked Tigress aside and he struck out his arm, catching the hog on his chest. It was like running into steel pole as the boar slipped up in the mud and dropped onto his back with a moan. Tigress, aggravated stabbed the hog.

Done with helping Fu terminate the ape, Shifu slid up onto his feet. "You may kiss…!" He flew up and kicked a leopard's cheek. "You may kiss!" As the red panda landed he dipped his head as a blade swished just above him. Once the weapon passed, Shifu summoned his chi and power blasted the handler up into the sky.

The Grand Master was finally at wits end.

"Just kiss!"

Po wasted not more time. He took Tigress' waist in his arm, yanking her towards him and onto his lips. As they joined, the world again seemed to drown out. No one could touch them; no one could break this moment of sure bliss. This was their first kiss, not as pair in love but as a married couple bonded by love. The kiss was passionate, lustrous and filled with nothing but warmth in the coldness of the downpour.

* * *

Sitting atop of his throne, with a long smirk plastered on his scratched beak, Hei Xin watched with zealous eyes as the battle below raged on. The Pure One's curved talons clutched and scraped at the stone carvings of the slanted rooftop as he leaned forward and stuck out his head, giving a leering gaze over his followers and the Blood Knights. And as he looked out of the battlegrounds, the Pure One's grin broadened when he saw that he Shen's posse outnumbered by twice the amount of infantry. Hei Xin lifted his beak to the storm clouds, seeing the shapes of his other followers do well to keep his brethren at bay in the sky.

Things were going nicely for the Commander.

He had anticipated such events to take place this evening, for as he heard Leo's call the eagle had no difficulty interpreting the wolf's howl. As a Pure One he could understand all calls made by his race, as was the same for any other Blood Knight or feral. And so, as the message was interpreted and Husto returned the howl, Hei Xin prepared a plan that was sure-in to win his army over the pack.

The first part had already been put into effect; he had lured them to the village border. Now it was time for these unbelievers of his revelation to be eliminated. They were a plague in his eyes, and so had to exterminated. The bird's smirk grew longer as he chuckled at his deceptive idea.

It was time for the next phase.

* * *

Chou-Hen and Shen slowly circled each other in the rain. They had ditched the attempts of trying to claw one another apart when Shen had pushed the wolf off of him and they both got to their feet. The two drew their swords from their scabbards and so began the tease of padding around each other. Their eyes burned in the night, but their expressions remained as cold as the chilling winds.

Their clothes were sodden with water and decorated in patches of mud stains. Shen's tail swished gently over the ground as he dragged the tip of his rapier through the dampened soil. Chou-Hen's one good eye glared through his eyebrows, Leo's twin swords resting on his shoulders.

Another lightning bolt hit the village.

Chou-Hen made the first move as he swung the blades in circles before lunging at Shen energetically. The feline smacked the two blades with his rapier as he stepped aside, tantalising Chou-Hen with a smirk. The wolf went for another attempt but was once again nudged by Shen's patiently strategized moves. Chou-hen stumbled on his footing but regained his composure and swung his muzzle round to Shen.

The kung fu warrior was still in the rainstorm. "You're being let on, y'know."

Panting heavily, Chou-Hen spiked an eyebrow. "Oh yeah, how?"

Shen slowly stepped round and the circling of the two males was put into effect again. "Hei Xin has no plans for you or your men." He motioned to the other ferals. "Once he has achieved his goals, he will bring the Pure Ones down upon you with no mercy or compassion. If you don't die today by my sword, you will by his claws. Save yourself the trouble and see the truth. All you are now is a lap dog to him, nothing more."

Chou-Hen's black ears were flattened back and his lips rose in a snarl. "You're just jealous!"

"Hardly."

"You're a fool! A fool for not joining our cause! Can you not see the power that we possess, that we hold? We can rule this land for ourselves like true predators and kill off the weak. Hei Xin will make us all true warriors, no space for the feeble and pathetic. We will become gods!"

Shen shook his head disappointingly, closing his eyes for a few seconds. "You will become food for Hei Xin's army to come, nothing more."

Chou-Hen had had enough. The wolf howled out in denial as he brought up his two swords and slashed them down simultaneously. Shen flashed open his eyes and grunted as he raised his rapier and blocked the attack but was forced back sliding through the sludge. The feline pushed with his arms and shoved Chou-hen off as they began their slashing and swinging at one another again through bared fangs and burning eyes. Sparks flew as steel met steel. The General and feline bolted forwards and locked blades, the muscles in their arms quivering as their noses came inches from each other.

With grunts the two leaders pushed away from each other. They quickly rushed forward again, eager to end the other, and raised their swords above their heads. But as they came to striking distance, the duo slid to a halt and drew their attention towards the village.

All around, the entire battlefield came to a standstill as both Pure Ones and feral gazed towards the village and the tallest tower. Tigress and Po broke form their kiss and both stared at the village mast. As everyone viewed the top of the building where Hei Xin resided they saw the large eagle spread out his massive sinister wings and beat them feverishly. The Commander's beak was opened and a loud, high pitched shriek came over the village. It was so overshadowing that not even the rumble of the storm could comprehend.

Chou-Hen immediately understood what was meant by this unusual squeal from the Pure One, the other feral soldiers knew as well. Chou-Hen felt the edge of his lips curl in a coy smile as he turned his head back to Shen. The wolf lowered his blades and lashed out a kick to the distracted feline, and Shen was knocked onto his back. Chou-Hen gave the order, thrusting a sword into the sky. "Retreat! Retreat!"

Some of the ferals had already began to pull away from the fight, at the sound of their General's barks all of Hei Xin's men turned and ran for the village, heading into Xi'an's gateway.

Shen pushed himself up onto his feet and turned to watch as the army moved away and fell back behind the wall of the settlements. As the others came into view the pack gathered up. Shen came next to Jai and Husto. The gang shared confused looks about them, all wondering why it was the army backed off so suddenly. The Pure Ones weren't winning, far from it, so why retreat into the village? The last of the ferals had faded behind the curtain of rainfall and faded into the mist.

For a while the large group all just stared incredulously at the village entrance. Shen looked to the tower, Hei Xin was missing too. "Where are they all going?" Po asked.

Though Shen had not the slightest clue how to answer the panda, he eyed the settlement sceptically. "I dunno." Shen replied. He tightened the grip around the handle of his rapier, the material groaned under his hold. He lowered his head and glared up through his eyebrows. There was only one way they were going to get answers. Looking either side of him to the pack, Shen added. "Let's go ask 'em." He growled charging forward and making a run for the village.

Getting cold from standing still in the rain, concerned for the flaunt order Shen gave, everyone gave each other looks of disagreement and doubt. Yet though they knew there was no way to bring Shen back, the only suitable thing was to go in after him. Jai and Leo went first, both of them thinking of the dream that Shen had described of his death in mind. The rest of the pack still alive soon followed in their wake.

Shen lead on with his army following in his trail as he entered the village and ran up the main stone cobbled road. On he went, the rest of the gang filing in behind him as they entered the gates of village and sprinted after the feline growling and snarling. The Pure Ones still desired to finish off what had been started. Though as they managed to catch up with Shen he slowed down his pace to a halt and they all entered the main section of Xi'an, the market square. All gazes searched around the streets and roads leading into different sections of the village. They were all empty. There was no sign of life anywhere.

Mumbles of unlikeness began to arise over the pack, cynical eyes probing the walls of the buildings that surrounded them. Apart from the storm and aerial battle still going on above and the pitter-patter of rain drops hitting the floor no sign or sound of Hei Xin's militia was found. It was as if Chou-Hen and his entire clan had vanished into thin air. Shen, like the rest of those who had been under Oogway's teachings gave a splinter of thought to the ironical idea that: nothing was impossible. Yet an entire mass of animals had disappeared. It _was_ impossible.

Shen was not buying it. "Stay frosty, they're out there." He warned, padding off ahead.

The sound of the mid-air fight overhead continued on.

The entire army looked about them, eyes searching the darkened buildings and the shower mist that was being made by the cramped bodies all generating heat in the cold weather. Po peered through the back alleys of the houses, still seeing not a living soul of Hei Xin's men. A cold tingle picked at his spine. The rest of the gang could feel it too. They shivered.

As Shen walked on with his rapier held by two paws, the feline looked around at the village that was once his home. He had been down these roads and back alleys enough times to know that there were not a lot of easy hiding spots. He walked on and stopped to glance up as he found himself at the base of the tallest tower in Xi'an. There then came a whooshing sound and a black corpus fell down right for Shen. Realization hit. "Get back!" He bellowed, waving an arm to his friends and family. The feline had just enough time to leap up and flip backwards away from the pack as Hei Xin came slamming into the stone road. The ground rumbled and a crater was formed on impact. Shen landed on his feet and sunk low into a stance as he raised his rapier defensively to the avian with a growl.

And as the Pure One lifted himself out of the hole with a beat of his wings, a flock of battle cries came over the pack and before anyone could step in to help Shen Hei Xin's army returned and brought down Hell upon the startled Pure Ones. Out from the shades they jumped and down from the roof tops, plunging their blades and fangs into the bodies of the Blood Knights.

"Ambush!" Husto howled as he took a diving feline coming at him fists first by the neck and smashed the cat into the stone floor.

Many Pure Ones were slaughtered instantly, a mist of blood rose to the sky. The Five, Tai Lung and Po immediately regain from their shock and lit into action at the sudden change of tide. Shifu growled as he bounded up and dove in to help his pupils. Jai, Leo, Husto and Fu got to work as they formed a circle of their own and faced out to Hei Xin's cohorts with snarls on their muzzles. Two seconds passed since the ambush, and already fierce scrap was engaged once more.

Shen cursed as much as to Hei Xin as himself. He felt like a complete idiot in not seeing the idea of Hei Xin's plan to ensure he would lead the pack into the village and fall right into his trap, dooming everyone. Shen looked past the eagle to the fight in the market square. Hei Xin swung his head round and gazed at the battle in a menacing way. Brining his view of sight back to Shen, the Pure One spread his wings and lowered his head to the floor. A long dark grin pulled at his lips. Shen backed away and raised his rapier.

The eagle grinned darkly. "I'm going to enjoy this."

"That makes two of us."

* * *

The numbers of Husto pack were beginning to dwindle, the ambush had left them to a disadvantages as many animals, both male and female, where killed before they had a chance to defend themselves. Yet they continued to fight to the end; they knew of the risks as to what would happen should any of Hei Xin's men be allowed to escape with their Commander. They pushed onwards, through the fatigue that was beginning to creep over them.

Shifu, Fu and the kung Fu students had once again adopted their circle again and were doing well to keep the ferals at bay in the small space that they had.

Tigress moved gracefully as she and her new husband worked together as a team, just like earlier, to fend off the creatures dumb enough to even try and break through the ranks of the gang. But the striped female couldn't help but growl in her throat as her mind registered the undeniable realization that they were losing this fight and being crowded.

She could already feel Tai Lung's tail brushing up against her own and the sense of her friends' feet. Tigress understood the plan being forced on them. They were to be boxed in and cramped together so there was even less room for movement, giving the ferals a chance to pick them off one by one.

The kung fu master knew Shifu would scold her at first, but the sudden idea that appeared in her mind would give her and her associates the ability to spread out again. Breaking lines, Tigress shot forwards at her nearest target- a large gorilla.

Shifu saw her immediately. "Tigress, get back here!"

Po's head snapped in the general direction of his lover. The feline bolted straight towards the ape, giving him no opportunity to make his move as she shot for his face, landing right on his big nose. The kick was hasty but the might behind it was enough to kill instantly as his entire face caved in. Tigress propelled herself back with her legs, flipping the feral onto his front, as she hurtled back to the gang.

"Po," she called, arms outstretched and paws open. "…swing me!"

The Dragon Warrior saw the notion to his wife's command as he knocked out a boar with the butt of his staff and quickly spun round, holding out the body of his stick horizontally with both paws. Tigress felt Po's wooden pole against her pads and took hold. Po smirked as he began to spin on his heels.

"Head's up!" He called to all those around him. Shifu, Fu and the rest of the gang gazed at the panda and saw Tigress holding onto his staff, the swing in motion told them all they needed to know. They ducked their heads on instinct and kept low to the ground.

With a whirlwind effect, Tigress and Po became a blur of black, white and orange torrents as they spun round. Hei Xin's men saw what they were doing but ignored intellectual approaches as they dove right for the gang, only to be kicked in the face as Tigress used her feet to run round them in a perfect circle.

Though they saw it, some of Hei Xin's men were too idiotic enough to see that there was no getting past the Dragon Warrior and striped kung fu master's joint team defence move. They sprung for the gang but were met by the sheer power of Tigress' feet running along their faces, sending spit flying along with shattered teeth. It wasn't long before a pile of unconscious bodies began to pile up like a fence around the warriors.

Po slowed his swing and allowed Tigress back onto her feet. The striped female shook her head to rid of the dizziness and furrowed her eyebrows as she concentrated on the newcomers. Fu and the others rose by her side as the circle was formed once more.

They all sunk back into the stances and went back to work.

Shen waved about his rapier as he tried to prick the Pure One's feathers, but the bird was large and surprisingly nimble. Shen was determined, as he thrust out his arm and tried to stab Hei Xin's heart though only succeed in slicing off a few feathers. Hei Xin squawked as he cut Shen's arm with his talons. The feline yelped and dropped his sword and cart-wheeled away as the Commander went for another attempt.

Getting some distance away from Hei Xin, Shen could feel his arm pound and now without any weapon. He grimaced over the avian and met the challenge in Hei Sin's red eyes. And it was in that stare that Shen figured he needed no weapon to defeat this foe. If there was to be any honour in his kill, or his death, he would go down fighting on equal terms- with his claws and fangs tearing into Hei Xin's skin.

But before the feline charged for the Pure One, Shen's red eyes glanced over the bird as a shadow as large as the Pure One himself caught Shen's stare in the darkness of the night shower. The animal was huge, and the shape of its body was easily defined by Shen's heightened feline eyes, and as the creature's features were made out Shen felt a growing sense of cold fear grip at his heart as he saw where the shadow was heading.

Hei Xin attacked.

* * *

Po spun his staff round like a windmill as finished off a foe. The panda struck out his paw and smiled as he waited for the next move. His jade eyes side-glanced over to Tigress, taking in her form with a proud, yet seductive gaze. Even as she punched out a boar on the snout, Po was attracted to her all the more. This was his wife.

But from his dazing at the tiger, the Dragon Warrior failed to realise that he had his back to the outside of the circle. The panda froze as he felt the ground suddenly shake. The tremors ran from the ground up through his legs and up to the tip of his spine. Po shivered at the feeling, the sounds got louder and closer as a great shadow descended upon him. Po spun round and found himself looking up with stunned eyes to the wraith towering over him. It was an ox twice the height, size, and mass of him. The bull towered over Po with pointy horns and a silver ring jutting from out of its nose, snorting out gusts of warm condensed clouds of air. With a drag of its massive arms the ox raised up above its head a humungous double-bladed axe.

Shifu paralysed a feral with quick precision of his nimble fingers and as he looked around for the next opponent the red panda instantly saw the large form of the animal standing in front of Po. The Dragon Warrior still did not move. It was an ox at least twice the size, height and mass of Po. A bolt surged from the storm clouds above. The white light lit up the shape of a large axe with twin blades being held in its hoofs.

The Grand Master's heart skipped a beat. "Po! Move!"

Po eventually snapped out of his gape as he saw the ready axe. Po lifted up his staff in defence. The blades came down, cutting into Po's beloved staff and lodged into the cobbled street. The panda wavered backwards as splinters were sent flying; he looked at the two halves of his walking sick with disbelief. Po looked up from his paws as the flat of a hoof swung across his cheek.

Thanks to the size and muscular potency of the ox's arms, Po was knocked clean off his feet with a yelp and careered with a sickening thud into a nearby wall of a house. Tigress wailed in horror was beaten away. Shifu gasped in shock. The feline's abrupt squeal attracted the attention of Tai Lung and the others. They all witnessed as Po was smacked aside. Viper gasped, the males flinched as Po hit the stone surface and fell down onto his front. He did not move.

They all turned to the ox who had struck Po, and with a massive battle cry jumped onto the bull in an attempt to avenge their fallen comrade. But they came not even in striking distance of the brute as he beat them away against another wall. Though they were tougher than Po and able to take more of a punch, the strike of the ox's hoof into the wall was still too much even for kung fu masters. The gang dropped and lay out on the wet floor with groans coming from each of them.

Tigress had a major headache and a hurting back from the beating, but she was too determined to reach her husband to let the pain of her body win her over. But as she tried to get back on her feet and step forward nausea swept over and she collapsed to her stomach, reaching out with a shaking arm for her lover. Her embers eyes fluttered like butterfly wings.

The Dragon Warrior began to regain consciousness. His arms dragged across the pools of rainwater, brushing over the stones as he placed his paws in front of him and push up. It wasn't the ox who had dealt the most damage, it was the collision with the wall and the back of his head that brought about the sense of dizziness and ringing in his ears. Through his paw pads pressed against the stone floor, Po could feel the heavy steps of the bull slowly walking his way. The panda tried to push up onto his feet, his arms shook weakly. His mind throbbed and his jaw ached tremendously.

Shen heaved a strenuous breath from his lungs as we slammed into a nearby wall by Hei Xin. The feline groaned as he hunched over and tried to maintain his footing, arms hanging in front of him droopily. As a screeching sound came to his ears, Shen looked up as the Commander hoped over to him and took hold of his shoulders in his talons and lifted him off the ground. With little effort, Hei Xin flapped his wings and lifted Shen off the ground and threw him into another wall. Then again, and again.

Shen felt his body beginning to break under the many times he was thrown about. Once or twice he tried to stop the bird, but Hei Xin would only overpower him. Shen gave it one more try. As the avian approached Shen pushed himself from the wall and strode over to meet Hei Xin with unsheathed claws. The Pure One smirked at Shen's enthusiasm, yet knew he had to end the feline's life.

Shen went to strike left, Hei Xin blocked. The Commander spun around with his jagged wings spread out. Shen jumped and flipped, missing Hei Xin's wing as it passed underneath. The feral went to make his attack but Hei Xin was a step ahead as he delivered a strong smack to Shen's face. The feline slid across the floor and landed on his face. Shen tried to push himself up but he suddenly felt Hei Xin place a large heavy claw on the small of his back. With a flew of his muscles one of his talons spiked downwards and plunged into the healing wound of where Shen had been shot with the arrow on the night he was taken.

He yelled out in agony at the white sting.

The Dragon Warrior shook his head to rid the wooziness and double-vision plaguing him, eventually managing to regain his sense of orientation. The footsteps of the ox were close by, the sound of the dragged axe screeching in Po's ears. The ox's shadow was upon him again. Po looked up to the unfriendly face of the beast; the bull snorted and kicked his foot against Po's chin. The panda's torso lifted off the ground. As he landed, the ox did the same thing again. Po wheezed as the air drained from his lungs, gasping.

Po's eyes rolled up and his sight became hazy once more. And as he gazed up, across from where he was the blurred image of someone reaching out for him came into view. A distant voice called his name. As the breath of oxygen returned to his body, Po's emerald orbs focused on the figure. It was Tigress: she was on her front, reaching across the floor for him- the golden proposal ring glistening on her claw.

It was then the world seemed to down, the sounds of the battle going on around Po faded into silence. The panda's thoughts that spoke in his mind were all that could be heard. They spoke clearly, the voice of his friends, in his ears as if they were standing right next to him. Among them was his own.

_This problem is your own, not mine. I risked my life and the life of my friends travelling into those mountains once before. I do not intend to risk it all again. _The panda's emerald eyes looked up; he could see Fu with Jai, Husto and Leo. She scrunched her face and stabbed at her foes. _Not for me, not for you, your cub or your boyfriend!_

The panda changed his stare over to Shen, catching how the bird pinned down his friend. The great bird's beak had curled into a long grin that reminded Po all too well of Chen Hue Leigh. _You once said to me and Po that you would die trying to change your ways and do good. I think this qualifies._

_If we don't stop Hei Xin, you won't have a family to love anymore!_

_A family to love…._

Swinging his head round to the other side, Po's dancing eyes finally came to rest on his new wife again. Tigress. Their gazes locked, his emerald ones with her glassy fluttering ember orbs. He watched from afar as she tried wildly to push her way to him. The fear and terror on her face, among the revulsion, was something the panda had never seen before in her complexion, she looked afraid and scared, just like that morning when they were alone together on the mountain side locked in each other's embrace. The tears made Po believe all the more he was reliving in the past. _She is one lucky woman, to have a guy like you. _

_The enemy you are destined to face will be tougher than any other adversary you've fought before. This fight will not be an easy one, you cannot let it go by chance.__You will live your life, but not if you fail to win the upcoming battle! Your life will be unbearable, filled with death, loss and pain! The same for the ones you love and hold so close to your heart!_

The shakes of the ground told the Dragon Warrior his executioner was positioning himself at angle to Po's neck, he did not move. He Dragon Warrior pulled his eyes away from Tigress and stared down at the small puddle in the ground. His reflection shined back the face of a panda with long black and white fur, covered with brown patches of mud and blood. The panda slowly closed his eyes.

And out of all those faces he could picture in his mind, one distinct muzzle stood out, taking the form of wolf with fur as white as pure snow and eyes that shined so bright the liveliest of green seemed dead. The lupine smiled simply at him. _If you ever wish to come out of it victorious you must learn to give into your hatred, anger and fury. You have to give yourself over to your darker side, only then can you do true good. You must become truly feral._ The wolf's voice echoed on, as if Po were reliving his dream encounter.

_No! I made a promise to myself to that I would not let myself become like that ever again. I risked too much for my friends. I almost lost Tigress because of it!_ The panda snarled mentally to the wolf's calm face.

_Take a deep breath, Dragon Warrior. You'll find things can be done much easier when you're calm. _Leo's gentle tone cooed. In the real world, the panda laid out on his stomach, still as a stone. The ox snorted disappointingly, expecting more of a fight from the renowned Dragon Warrior. Seeing he was going to get no more of a brawl with the panda, he grabbed the long pole of his axe and lifted the hefty weapon out of the floor. He swung the great blades past Po's head and raised it high into the stormy sky.

A flash of lighting struck the land, everything was sent into a blinding light for a few seconds.

Po still did not move. He took in a slow breath of cold air through his nose, feeling a sense of lightness. _You must become truly feral._

_Truly feral._

_Feral._

_Feral!_

_Feral!_

_Po..._ Tigress' soft tone whispered with tender care in his mind, silencing all other voices. _I love you._

_I love you..._

I love you.

Po finally realized. Now he understood. After being so inquisitive about and curious as to what it was like to be feral, the panda knew everything about it. For as long as he could remember he was afraid, scared of the world and the darkness that swept over it with an evil smile. All the shadows and abysses; the hatred, the anger, the fury, loss and the aching, it was all an illusion. It was never real, only an image created to hold back the spirit of the wild animal that tore at the inside of his soul. The world opened up to him, like a beautiful flower on the first morning in the new spring. There was happiness, joy, cheer, enjoyment, passion. Love. Po felt it all; his heart was rid of the darkness. He was no longer afraid. All he felt was bliss. Enlightenment.

_This_ is what it meant to be feral.

Po's lips stretched out into a smile and his eyes opened with a thunderous boom from the Heavens.

They were brilliant red.

Slowly the world fazed back into speed, the raindrops fell with down upon the land and gained momentum. The cries and roars of the Pure Ones and Hei Xin's soldiers reached up to the blackened thunder clouds and met with the booming clash of Heavens. Po slowly wrapped his claws around the handle of a small dagger discarded nearby and waited patiently. With a mighty cry, the ox's muscles quivered as he brought down his arms and with them the curved edge of his axe.

"_PO!" _Tigress dizzily_ s_creamed.

The feral Dragon Warrior did not make his move till the moment was necessary; when he could just feel the touch of the cold, wet blade touch the tips of the black fur on his neck. Po instantly rolled aside, the axe falling down harmlessly into the ground beside him.

Seeing the big nose ring hanging from the bull's nose, Po latched out a paw and pulled down with unimaginable strength. The ox never saw it coming. And as the astonished brute's face was pulled to mere inches from Po's smiling muzzle he was too late to realise that he had made the last mistake of his life.

Transforming his smile into a snarl, Po swung his arm against the ox's neck and impaled the blade of the dagger into the bull's throat. The great ox grunted and his body twitched as the blade pierced his rough skin and cut into his gullet. The wraith's face drained of its colour. Po swiped the blade free and pushed with his feet against the brute's saggy chest, bashing him off and onto his back with a ground-shaking thud. The creature was dead before he hit the floor.

Shifu and the others had started to come around. Tigress' vision cleared and she gawked, astounded to the panda and his agile moves. It was a side of fighting that neither of them had seen- again. And they watched as Po did not remain standing poised for long. He flipped the blade in his paw so the handle was sticking out. With a newfound professional accuracy, Po threw the dagger in the direction of Hei Xin.

* * *

The great Commander stared down pleasingly at Shen's body restrained beneath his talons. He savoured the moment, feeling the sense of power and triumph that swelled within his chest. All he had to do now was finish the job. He could feel the energy leaving Shen, draining from the feline's beaten body. Pulling his claws free of the wound in Shen's shoulder, Hei Xin raised his talons into the air and moved to strike, they glimmered with water.

Shen braced himself for the kill, with no way of getting out from under Hei Xin's weight the only thing he could do was wait for the end to come. The only thing that would save him now, was a miracle.

There was a swish of air and the sound of a sharp gasp. Hei Xin stepped off of Shen. The feline propped himself up on his elbow and faced the Commander. He gazed down to the eagle's long black feathered neck where the blade that was thrown by Po had lodged itself in Hei Xin's throat. The Commander stepped back further with a wavering balance, he blinked stupidly and looked down to the blade in his neck. Shen moved his gaze to where the blade came from, his eyes coming to rest on Po.

The feral panda stared back at Shen through his scarlet eyes. The feline stared back with his own. And as the two feral creatures met eyes, Po nodded his head. Shen understood the message without fail. Snapping his head back to Hei Xin, Shen rolled onto all four of his paws and sunk low to the ground. His fur bristled and he let a long growl ripple in his throat before he pounced on the injured bird and pinned him to the ground.

There was a silence between the two enemies.

Shen glared fiercely down in Hei Xin's face. What he saw was no longer anger or hatred, but shock with a hint of failure. Failure at witnessing the dream that the Pure One had so longed for become shattered like broke glass. The bird made no attempt to strike back, he had already given up. The eagle closed his eyes as he took in a shallow but long breath. Shen eyed the bird.

Hei Xin opened his eyes again, and Shen was shocked to find himself not looking into the red eyes of a Pure One but the perfect ocean blue orbs of a creature that was now free of its demons and fears.

With another draw of breath and a few coughs of blood, Hei Xin pulled his beak into a shaking smile. "W-worth a t-try….."

Shen's face hardened, his lips raised and his nose scrunched up as he put on the most ferocious snarl Hei Xin had seen in a while. The Commander knew that his time had come, his blue-core moon eyes begged for relief; he leaned his head to the side and offered Shen his throat. The feline obliged to the Pure One's demand as Shen curled his lips up and let his feral instinct take over as he dove in a sunk his teeth into flesh and blood with a sickening growl.

Hei Xin made no sound of plea or denial as he felt Shen's fangs price his skin, he welcomed the touch. He wanted the death: a punishment for his sins, for now he saw that all he had done was wrong. Though his legs and wings twitched on nerves, the eagle closed his eyes and allowed death to take him. His body grew still.

Filled up on the taste of blood, Shen bit down hard on the bone he could feel within his teeth; with a great swing oh his head Shen released his jaw on the bird's neck as he body was thrown right into the hassle of the battle. At the unexpected incoming of Hei Xin's body, blood Knights and ferals jumped back and the entire village went silent.

"It's over!" Shen shouted as he pushed himself up onto his. All eyes turned to him. "It. Is. Over!"

All of the commander's followers could not behold the sight of their leader to salvation dead and lying against the cold stone road, a gaping hole in his neck. The shock was so much that as they glanced from the lifeless Pure One to Shen all the ferals dropped their weapons in a chorus of clangs to the floor. One of them began to back away, then another and another. It wasn't long till all of the remaining ferals turned and ran from the battleground. As for those in the sky, the aerial version of Hei Xin's army had longed since been diminished. The eagles and other birds landed amongst their brethren.

Some Blood Knights moved to chase after the fleeing ferals.

"No! Leave them be." Husto barked. "What they've done here will haunt them for the rest of their lives. That is torture enough."

As the pack observed the cowardly retreat of the ferals, Fu, Shifu and the others all turned back to Shen. The rain had started to let up, coming now into a light drizzle yet continued to pour on. Yet for all that stayed in the market square, no one seemed to notice the figure hiding in the shadows.

As Shen watched the feral creatures left behind their weapons and lives, feeling off into the forest the feline took in a few deep breaths as he steadied his rapidly beating heart and soothed his mind. Soon all eyes turned back to him. And as Shen stared back to Jai, Fu and the rest of his friends, the black cat could not help but feel a smile snake its way onto his bloody muzzle.

The rain was starting to let up as the creeps of morning were on their way.

For reasons that no one could fathom, they all – both warriors and Pure Ones- started to catch Shen's smile and show grins of their own. Soon Shen's smirk opened up into a chuckle and then a full on laugh. Everyone did the same as they waited for the feline to walk over so they could congratulate him- it was infectious. Or maybe just madness, who cared?

Fu dropped the knives in her paws as she felt tears come to her glassy violet eyes. Jai and Leo shared a hug as the lioness let go of her sword so she could wrap both her arms around the big wolf. Husto came over and slapped his brother's back friendly-like. Po and Tigress held each other in their embraces. Shen looked to his wife lovingly, walking over to her as she started to run in his direction. Shen continued to laugh on.

He had done it! Hei Xin had been defeated and now the remains of his army were scattered, China was safe- heck! - the whole world was put at ease with what happened here in the village of Xi'an. But more importantly, Shen had survived his prophecy. He had outlived his dream and his death. He was victorious and nothing was sweeter. He could live the rest of his life with his family. He could watch Hao grow up and fall in love. He could grow old with Fu and sleep in her arms once more, endlessly. The Green-eyed wolf was wrong. It was not his time to die. Not here! Not now!

If only that was what really happened.

Between Shen and his family, between a nightmarish dream and freedom, between the past and the present, stepped reality. And, as the family and friends watched, horror woke in their minds. For out from behind of Shen, Chou-Hen's form took shape from the shadows and he thrust one of his blades straight through Shen's back through his heart and out by his chest. Chou-Hen growled darkly in his ear.

Fu's smile vanished from her muzzle and she felt a scream escape her mouth. All attention was drawn to her and then to Shen. More cries of disbelief and horror.

Shen's body jerked forward as he was held back by the wolf's thick arm curled around his neck. Blood spewed from his mouth and the pain only came in greater waves. Shifu felt a dark sense of déjà vu come over him and felt his heart start to die along with his son.

Chou-Hen let out his toothy smirk as he stared from Shen to the group and thrust the sword deeper into Shen's back. The feline was forced onto the tips of his toes. His arms and claws twitched as he tried to reach up to the blade. Husto and Leo pulled back their ears and growled menacingly at the feral. Chou-Hen saw their stares towards him and emphasised his kill by pushing the sword once more into Shen before yanking the blade free and letting go.

Instantly, with a gasp, Shen collapsed on the spot.

Everyone looked down to the feline.

No one could speak.

No one moved.

That was till Fu's voiced wailed out in an unimaginable banshee screech that cracked the frozen souls of all who had just bared witness to the horrendous sight like weakened ice.

"_**SHEN! **_The lynx visibly shook.

Chou-Hen chuckled as he looked up to the pack and turned on his heels, dropping his sword and running off into the mist of the falling rain. Leo and Husto were on his tail the minute he backed away from Shen.

Everyone ran to Shen's side. Fu was the first to get there, sinking into the pool of crimson blood that now formed around Shen's body. He was cold in her pads, very cold. His eyes fluttered groggily as the lynx took her husband's head in her lap and cradled him in her arms. His eyes had lost their feral colour and were now their old yellow hue, but even they were beginning to grow dim.

As the others gathered round and stared down on Fu as she called her lover's name in her hold, shouting and kissing his face so vividly, begging for him to get up that she did not see the light of life fade from his eyes. They went grey. A gentle breath escaped his lips. Fu caught wind of the sound and kissed Shen even firmer and prayed harder, it was no use.

Jing Shen was dead.


	28. Hero

Is Love Safe?

Chapter Twenty Eight- Hero

Ming, Little Shen, Ling, Chou-Hen, Hei Xin, Hao, Husto, Leo, Jai, Fu, Keera, Chen Hue Leigh and Shen (c) mine.

* * *

Morning arose.

The sun broke over the horizon, casting the sky in a wave of purple and soft blue. The storm clouds were shooed away into the darkness of the fading night, taking with them the cold winds and rain as it gave a defiant grumble. The snow tops of the Dragon's Pass Mountains never looked so radiant in the light of the great rising ember sphere.

Husto and Leo padded along the stone cobbled street of the village, their feet dragged by sadness. Side by side the two wolves walked slowly, their eyes facing the ground but staring off distantly as they were both lost in the world of grieving thoughts and sorrow. Their muzzles dripped with the crimson liquids of fresh blood from their latest kill. They had chased Chou-Hen far off to the border of the village, managing to catch up with him easily thanks to their naturally muscular bodies. The wolf General was within their grasp quickly and when they caught him neither Leo nor Husto were merciful. After they finished with ending the life of the animal who had so dishonourably separated Shen from the world, the only thing that could be deciphered from his body were the remains of torn limbs and bone.

As the two brothers made their way back to the market square, Husto turned his muzzle to Leo with consideration. He may have only known Shen for a few hours, but the Pure One could see how close Leo had become with the feline. Husto could never understand the depth of emotional distress his brother was in for the loss of Shen, yet he was honoured to have fought alongside an animal who, though may not have been born a Blood Knight, had the heart and soul of the bravest creature the pack leader had ever known.

The only other time the Husto ever knew someone give such a sacrifice was on the night he and Leo lost their parents. The memory of that tragic night still haunted the black wolf. He felt no different then, as he did now.

* * *

Shifu closed his eyes as he turned away from the sight of his deceased son's body. He could feel a tightness in his chest, like as if an iron bar had been wrapped around his lungs and started to squeezed. The Grand Master's old heart had shattered, broken like weakened glass when he watched Chou-Hen thrust his blade right into Shen's heart. He needed to be alone. Shifu limped away in silence. The others watched him go. Tai Lung went after him, but Crane's reached out and stopped him. The shake of his head told the snow leopard to leave him be.

As the sage, despairing kung fu master made his way from the market square, he let out an arm and steadied himself against the wall of a house. Leaning up against the residence, he slipped round the corner into the darkness of the back road and laid his back up against the wall. With a shaky gasp of breath, Shifu closed his sapphire eyes- long since turned ashen and empty of life- and slammed his head back, the hollow chuckles of anguish starting. Dropping his head forward into his hands the red panda wept into them profoundly, taking in bitter chokes as he rubbed the palms of his hands into the patch of brown fur around his eyes as the tears fell. Sliding down the wall, Shifu cried harder in seclusion as he wrapped his striped tail around his legs. He wailed intensely, though his howls did not escape the ears of his students or Tai Lung.

Never having before heard Shifu cry, it did not do well to comfort the spirits of the Furious Five. Viper hugged onto Monkey, the simian comforted her with pats as he tried his best not to cry as well. Crane and Mantis were no different. The avian found the only way was to hide his face beneath his hat as he tipped it forward, though it did not stop the salty drops of liquids running from his eyes.

Tai Lung's ember orbs burned like a roaring fire as he gazed on Shen's corpse. Though they were not of blood relation, the snow leopard couldn't help but feel his fur quiver. All his life Tai Lung had grown up with Shen as his older sibling, a spouse whom he would usually play with as a cub and sometimes look after when Shen was first brought to the palace. He reminisced well in the memory of when Shifu returned back to the palace, the lion no bigger that the size of a small pillow. The way they first met, with Shen reaching out a pip-size paw and taking hold of his claw, yipping and cooing joyfully. And as they aged through the years, they would occasionally spar with some sort of laughable outcome that usually got them into trouble. Even when they laid waste to the Valley of Peace, Tai Lung desired to do it with no one else than his younger sibling.

The snow leopard balled his paws into fists as he spun on his heels and walked up to the nearest wall, raising a fist and hammering it down upon the stone building. The surface cracked under his blow. Releasing his anger and suffering, Tai Lung continued to hit the wall endlessly. When the barrier finally collapsed from his strikes, Tai Lung dropped down to his knees paws with it. His pony tail fell loose of its band and hung around his face in strands. He shuddered visibly, giving in as the tears finally fought their way forward. Tai Lung sobbed profoundly as he rose up a shaking paw to his face, taking in a breath that sounded like he was lost of air.

Tai Lung had turned into a right mess.

He missed Shen.

Jai felt empty. Hollow. Her body shook with disbelief as she sat on her knees by her brother. Jai stared down on his body with teary eyes, having reverted back to their glowing blonde colour. Her paws trembled as she reached out and laid them on his torso. He felt like ice to her touch. This was not what she wanted. This was not how things were meant to end. Shen was meant to have survived. To live on; so that they could be a family again. No longer. Her eyes grew black and angry and bright with pain. From the agony of her loss she suddenly felt alone. She was the only survivor; she was the last person in her bloodline to still have lived throughout this hellish nightmare.

Her mother, Keera, her father, Chen, and now her younger brother, Shen, had left her in this world without the comfort or affection of a family to love. Jai shook her head as she pulled her paws in and clenched them into fists, they trembled. She begged, she prayed, she pleaded with all her soul and spirit for Shen to come back, to take her in his arms and say everything was going to be alright. She was so alone. Jai growled as the tears burned her eyes.

Then she felt the touch of a large paw on her back. Jai felt her body loosen as she turned to find Leo crouching at her side. The lioness felt her lip tremble. The gravity of knowing that Shen was gone straining her emotions deeper than she had ever let them go in a long time. She let out a soft whimper as the rough tears dripped down her cheeks and Leo took her into a tight embrace. He placed a paw on the back of her head and began to caress her comfortingly with his claws.

Fu gently rocked her body back and forth as she never left her sight off Shen. The lynx hummed lovingly a song that she and Shen used to sing to one another on the corrupt of days when they would rarely argue. One way or another one of them would whisper the memorable lyrics of the song, then pause and wait for the other to finish off the line. Before too long they would it would start to grow into a low grim singing that would eventually rise up till both were letting their voice overpower all emotional suffering that either of them felt. The song was played at their wedding, it was played when they would argue; Fu could think of no other time for such memories to caress her than now through the notes and tunes of her purring.

Still feeling helpless Fu chocked on glistening tears that slipped from her violet eyes, falling down her cheeks before dripping onto her husband's face. She stroked his cheek caringly with her thumb, he still felt cold. The village was suddenly brought into the light of the sun. Yet it harboured no warmth to those in the settlement, it lit no quailed hearts from the grim shadows of heartbreak.

Nothing would.

Fu stopped her purring of the song as she took her eyes from Shen and looked up to the golden sphere coming up in the distance. Harder tears welled in her eyes as a single memory exploded in her mind. "L-look, Shen." She spoke, shattering the silence of the village. "It's morning." Everyone, even Shifu from his corner in the shadows, turned their gazes to the horizon as the beautiful sun crept its way into the sky, setting the skyline into a fiery yellow and orange among the clouds. "It's the next day." Fu's throat burned as she swallowed a lump. This was no ordinary new day to her, it was a marker. It was a special day. Looking back down to her husband's forever- sleeping form, the lynx lowered herself down and placed the most gentlest of kiss on her deceased lover's lips. She pulled away and forced a weary smile.

These words were the hardest things she ever said. "Happy anniversary, Shen."

It had been exactly one year to this day, in this very village that Shen and Fu got married.

Po held Tigress close to him as they both watched Fu embrace her husband's head. Po's red feral orbs twitched with stoic emotion, somehow managing to hold it all in. Tigress was doing her best, clutching to Po's vest and long fur. He could feel the anguish flow through her into him as they both stared to the sunrise. It was then Po's heightened feral ears caught the sound of cautious footsteps approaching. The panda looked down from the sun and gazed around as he saw the residents of the village begin to come out from their homes and crowd around the market square.

This was not the time for a crowd, not here.

Not with Shen dead.

But the panda knew there was nothing he could do to keep them back, he had no choice but to let them come closer. Then a thought hit Po's mind and in a split second had made a serious decision. If all these strangers were going to see their departed hero, then one other person should be here as well. Releasing his wife, Po turned and strode purposefully to the Pure Ones. The animals separated as the feral Dragon Warrior made his way through the pack and then the villagers, walking on past them without a single glance back. They gasped at the sight of his eyes though he paid them no attention as he focussed on the road out of the village.

"Po." Tigress called after him as she chased up. "Po, where are you going?"

The panda stopped and turned to the female. "I'm going back to the cabin." He responded shoddily. He glanced down to the floor and then met tigress' yellow eyes again. "I'm going to get Hao."

Tigress was concerned on the idea. "Po, wait." She took her husband's wrist in a grip. "Do you think that's a good idea? I mean, he's only a cub."

"But he is _Shen's_ cub." Po said bitterly. "I would not let all these strangers see Shen this way without the man who saved them and us not be looked upon by his own son. No," The panda shook his head and easily slipped his wrist free of Tigress' grasp. "…Hao has to know. He has a right. I have to tell him."

The Dragon Warrior made for the road again. Tigress watched him leave. She knew: inside Po was aching just as badly as the rest of them. He just didn't show it, his feral state prevented such things. He only chose not to revert back for he did not wish to be weak, not when he told Hao the truth. Tigress bit her lip and thought hard. She regarded Po uncertainly. "Po!" She bellowed again. The panda halted and turned round, only to have Tigress come up and kiss his cheek. "We'll tell him together." She said, taking his paw in her own.

As the pair left for the cabin hidden in the woodlands, Husto watched them from the front of his pack. His large black ears had caught every word of their conversation. He never knew Shen had a cub. Husto could understand as a father himself what it was like to feel love for a child. Yet the very idea of a cub having to be told his father his dead seemed almost unbearable to the wolf. Husto looked over his shoulder and turned to Shen and Fu.

It felt right. It _was_ right. No warrior, or father, husband or brother could ever give up so much for the rest of the world. Such a sacrifice was worthy of so much. This being gave his life to ensure the survival of others. He had lead on into the depths of the abyss without owning even so much as a thought spark of deciding otherwise. And though Shen's heart had been pierced, Husto believed it to beat on forever in the bodies of all those the feline had inspired, including him.

And as was tradition for Pure Ones to say their farewell to such a hero, the large black wolf lowered himself down onto his four paws. The rest of the pack saw and understood, joining their leader as they dipped to the floor. Stretching out his front paw, Husto bowed his head to Shen and Fu. The kung fu masters, Jai and Leo saw the Blood Knights salute the dead feline in respect and so felt it necessary as they too bowed their heads. The villagers, now seeing the truth, looked among each other before they saluted traditionally and bowed at the waist.

Husto took his part and raised his muzzle to the sky, pulled his ears back and howled to the dawn with admiration to pay tribute to Shen's spirit, wherever it may be. The call went far and wide; it reached the woodlands to Po and Tigress, to Hao, Ming and little Shen in the cabin. Further and further it went on into the mountains of the Dragon's Pass, echoing Husto's howl across the land, carrying with it the story of the saviour of Xi'an.

The saviour of China.

The saviour of the world.

* * *

There was no longer any pain or ache. No urge for rest; only a sense of floating and being weightless. Shen opened his eyes in flutters, letting his pupils to adjust to the bright lights of clouds that seemed to enshroud all of which the feline could see. Shen rose up a paw to shield his vision, only to gasp when he saw his arm. The fur was no longer the black colour in which he had grown accustomed to seeing but a shining coat of brilliant white. Shen raised up his other arm as he looked down upon his body, seeing that all about him was covered in the same colour. His clothes, no longer torn or shredded, glittered as if made from diamonds. Then it caught his sight, his mane- it had grown back. Shen ran his claws through the lengthy strands of hair that crowned his face, tied back in a pony-tail. Even the tuff of hair on the end of his tail had returned. He was a lion again.

As the feline inspected the area round him, the clouds soon began to draw back like a receding wall till they came to a stop. Shen gasped in realization as he recognised the place in which he stood centre. He acknowledged it instantaneously.

He was at the stone den from his dream. Shen felt marvelled, though having seen the place before, at the sight of it all. Everything seemed to give of a golden haze, even the tiniest detail sparkled with the yellow light. This time there was no snow, all of it grass and stone. Shen found himself to be wearing no sandals covering his feet. But he did not mind, the grass felt fresh and tickled the gaps between his toes. It was warm and comforting.

The sound of running water drew Shen's gaze to the centre of the den where he found the running stream of the crystal clear water snaking its way into the small pond. Yet when he stood over its edge and peered down in past its surface, the lion could not see down to the bottom.

Shen felt a sudden movement behind him. He spun round and narrowed his eyes as a flash of light temporarily blinded him. The feline groaned and rose up his arms. As the luminosity started to dim, Shen blinked as he peered through his arms, soon being able to lower them as the glow vanished completely. And as he gazed to the source of the fading light, Shen froze and his mouth fell into an open gape.

There, before him, was a wolf and a lioness.

Shen studied them. The wolf was well built on a large physique; bulky muscular arms and broad shoulders, a strong neck and a locked jaw. His face was weathered with age yet the most striking feature of him was the pair of remarkable azure eyes that surged with the grace of flowing river. He wore a clean long-sleeved robe and trousers. Shen looked to the lioness at his side, she was beautiful; a spitting of Jai. Wearing a hanfu, her fur was short-cut apart from the small tuff of hair on the end of her tail. Her eyes burned like a rising sun, holding a tender and kind gaze in them. She was on the verge of tears. Both the couple's furs and clothes were a shining white like Shen's.

The feline stared at the two with disbelief, his mind not wanting to accept that they were real. His voice cracked as he heard the words drip from his mouth. "M-mama, Baba?" He felt breathless.

The wolf's long lips curled into a smile as he chuckled and the lioness let go of her tears as they both nodded.

It was them, Chen Hue Leigh and Keera.

His parents, he had found them.

Shen's knees wobbled as he made his way over to the wolf and lioness. He inspected them with his dancing yellow eyes, looking between their faces as he came to a stop just in front of them. It may have been only seconds but to Shen it felt like a lasting eternity before any movement was made as Keera took the lead and jumped into her son's arms, captivating all of him as much as she could with an unyielding hold. "Oh, Shen!" She cried, her eyes weeping joyful tears into his clothes.

Shen a first didn't know how to respond; though, eventually, the right choice came as the lion took hold of his mother and hugged her. It was the first time for them both, since the day that they were separated by her early departure in the Valley of Peace, that they had connected as mother and son. Chen beamed a cheerful smile as he wrapped his family in his large arms. Shen slipped out his arm and laid it over his father's back as tears of overwhelming delight seeped from his clamped eyes.

"Welcome, Shen." Greeted a voice whispering the air, it was dear and soft as a gentle breeze. The feline's small ears twitched and Shen pulled away from his mother and father, following the trail of water up to the opening of the majestically carved boulder sitting atop two small stones like an arc. From atop, a bright light shined over the stone den. Shen waited as a muzzle crept into sight from out of the glow. Bit by bit, he watched as a wolf twice his size come out on all fours onto the rock. The lupine's coat was a sparkling snowy colour, fairly hiding the powerful muscles beneath. But the gripping thing, however, was the pair of emerald eyes that glowed so fiercely that they seemed to make all greenery of the world look pale. They were keen, intellectual with a natural sense of a true predator. The wolf came a stop and lifted its head high as it smiled significantly down on Shen past its nose. "It is good to see you again."

Shen wiped his damp eyes and grinned warmly to his old friend- the Green-Eyed wolf. "Likewise, my old friend." He gave a fleeting look around, glancing at his parents then back to the wolf. "Am I…?"

The white lupine's pointy ears lowered, his tone was grave. "I am sorry, Shen," He said, sinking his head as he leapt down from the boulder and onto the patch of grass. Even though he walked on all four of his paws the wolf still towered over Shen, with his chest reaching the lion's eye level. The white canine dipped his head to Shen. "….this chapter in your story has come to an end. You are now in the realm of the eternal plain; some know it to be the afterlife." He lifted his muzzle proudly and looked around, emphasising to the beauty of the stone den. "This is the place you decided to come when you passed on from the mortal world. It was the one dwelling empty of any pain, loss or aching memory that your mind could remember."

"The perfect haven." Shen day-dreamed as he gave another look around with a grin feeling a longing peace that he had not known for some time. He was truly at one with the universe; he could feel the energy running through his body, tingling his fur as if it were being stroked by Fu. "Fu…" Shen said solemnly, his ears falling and the happiness in his yellow eyes fading as he thought of his wife. "…Jai….Hao. My wife, my son, my sister," The lion moved his eyes up to the wolf who only continued to look on back at him. "….all my family, all my friends. They think I'm dead."

"You _are_ dead, Shen." The white wolf growled compassionately. "Your body is dead, only your spirit can live on here."

"But," Shen stammered, sensing his world come crashing down around him. "….but they need me, they….they need to know that I'm still here."

The canine shook his muzzle, his face adopting the saddened expression again, followed by the same severe tone. "I am sorry, Shen. You fail to understand what it is you've become. Here you are an everlasting spirit. You're not of a body, you are purely soul." As soft as the wolf tried to explain to Shen, the feline could only feel his heart descend lower and lower to the ground and beyond. "Your chapter in life has finished. It was time for you to come and join your family up here among the Heavens."

Shen stood there, frozen as the words had pierced not only his heart but his soul. He felt entirely dead again, loss of all happiness and bliss. Everything faded as the weightlessness vanished and Shen believed himself to be held down by the heaviest of chains. From behind him, Keera slowly outstretched her paw out to her downhearted son in means of comforting him. Yet as her claws touched him, Shen simply pulled away from her and hauled his hefty feet through the grass till he was standing over the edge of the embankment again. His ember orbs stared distantly into the never-ending pool of water. "I don't believe it," He spoke grimly. "…even in Heaven, there is still no happiness."

"But Shen," Growled the wolf, his smile lost. "…you are happy; you've been reunited with your mother and father. You've spent a lifetime away from them and now, when they finally appear before your eyes, you still are not content?"

"There is a difference." Shen answered, speaking as if he had been taken over by a gloomy cloud. "There is a difference between….what your heart wants, and what it really needs. Between that which you lust for in all the universe, and what you already have. I know now that I've got what I wanted," The lion shook his head in denial. "… and I realise it's not what I need." He turned round and faced the wolf head strong, jaw locked in place. "What I _do_ need is my wife; I need my son and my sister I need my friends and those who I've come to call as my family by my choice! Most of them may not have been related to me by blood or flesh, but they are family none the less. Because it was not me who made it over the years to who I am, it was _them_." The white wolf's straight lips curled a little at the edges, his green eyes lighting a spark. He watched as Shen went on. "It was their love, their care, their thoughts and friendship that drove me to become me! I don't want to watch every day and night as my family weeps over my death in sorrow whilst I stand here and whisper a prayer in their ear." The smile on the lupine's face stretched and curled further, a fire now in his green eyes. "No! I want to hold them, I want to laugh with them, spar with them," The smile broadened still. "…argue with them. I want to know that for the rest of my life I will be by their side ready to protect and love them as much as they would for me! You said it yourself: there is nothing, _nothing,_ more powerful than Love. So prove it! Show me how much Love means to you."

Silence came over the stone den. Shen's admirable fur shivered enthusiastically and his fangs clenched bare to the white wolf who still wore his signature smile that had grown through Shen's speech. Chen and Keera said nothing as they held each other close, watching as their son went up against a force his mind could not even imagine. And yet the wolf kept on grinning, his ripe eyes blazing with life. It soon became too much as he started to burst out in a booming laughter. Though most would have thought it to be offensive, Shen found no incentive of intimidation or bullying. It was just laughter, nothing else to it. Chen and Keera smiled in relief. All Shen could do was hike a sceptical eyebrow.

"Oh, Shen," The wolf chuckled. "….I knew that one day I'd hear you say those words." The great lupine got to his feet as he leisurely pawed his way over to the pond, his tail flowing behind him like the ripples in the water. His gaze never left the lion. "You have proved to be everything that the people of the world need. Your spirit is something that has not been seen in a very long time. You are pure hearted: always putting others before yourself even if it means certain death- you've proved that!"

Shen was deadpan. "So?"

"So…" The lupine added on as he gently raised a paw and petted the surface of the pool. He swung his muzzle to Shen. "…if you remember correctly, I said that this chapter in your life has finished. But where one chapter ends…"

"….another must begin." Chen finished as he and Keera came up to their son. The lion's face brightened. "You are right, Shen, you do need them. And they need you."

"It's time you went back to the family that wishes for you the most." Keera beamed as she stared at her son.

Shen couldn't believe it. He was being given a second chance at life, another attempt to live the rest of his life with his wife and son, and Jai. The lion turned his head to the pool, the white wolf still pawing away at its surface with concentration on his face. Shen twisted back to his parents. "Come with me." He said as the idea spiked his thoughts. The white wolf gave a side glance to Chen and Keera. "Come back with me, we can be a proper family again." Shen took his mother and father's arms in his paws.

"Shen..." Chen tried to speak.

"Jai will be so thrilled to see you again."

"Shen, we…"

"You can come live with me and my family. We'll build on the house, repair the damage done, spread it out. Redo the entire thing!"

"Shen! We can't go!" Keera snapped. Shen silenced himself, stunned by the lioness' biting scorn.

The lion blinked and switched eyes between Chen and Keera. "W…what…of...of course you can."

Chen swayed his muzzle from side to side, his ears falling slightly. "No, son. We cannot. We've lived our lives and we're happy here." The old leader of mercenaries took his wife's paw in his own, their wedding rings gleaming as they laced each other's claws. He laid his other paw on Shen's shoulder. An honest, fatherly stare in his cool blue eyes. "We've watched you grow, watched you train and build your life. We watched you love the right woman, always knowing when to make the right choices. Even when you fell in my shadow you still managed to climb out and change your ways. And we've never been more proud of you."

Knowing her husband had said what needed to be said, the lioness stepped forward as cupped her son's cheeks in her paw. She raked her claws through his mane, feeling the brush of every strand. Shen closed his eyes tightly as he nuzzled her touch. "We have always loved you, Shen." She purred, stroking him with her thumb. Shen opened his eyes again, they danced majestically. "And we always will, never forget that. We will always be here for you, watching over your shoulder as you continue to live your life the way you want it. One day we will see you again, and Jai. We'll spend our eternity in the clouds, forever." Tears came back into the female's eyes. "We love you, Shen."

The lion did his best not to cry, he tried desperately not to show his weakness, but when he glanced up into his father's blue orbs, seeing how they became glassy with tears the feline could hold it in no longer. Gripping both of his parents he pulled the wolf and lioness into a tight hug, gripping them in his claws. "I'll look up to you every night, thinking of you every day. I promise." He wrapped them even tighter against his chest. "I promise."

With a deep sigh of satisfaction, Shen pulled away and wiped his eyes as he turned to the great white wolf. The canine moved its nose to Shen. He flashed his signature smile. "I always knew you were special."

Shen chuckled as he wiped away the last tear. "Touché."

The wolf laughed. "Take care, Shen. I'll be waiting to hear of your latest story when you return."

The lion nodded. "I look forward to it."

The lupine nodded to the pool of which the ripples flowed across. Shen nodded in understanding, taking a deep breath and holding it Shen dipped his eyebrows and jumped into the water. As he disappeared beneath the surface, Chen and Keera joined the wolf at the side of the pool, ogling as their son faded into the blackness of the depths. And as they stared on, more figures came at their side, all peering down into the pool. Around the circle of the pond there stood another wolf with one scar running up along his muzzle, Chou-Hen; a snow leopard with emerald eyes, it was Ling; a large eagle whose feathers were no longer a sinister black and his wounds were all gone, Hei Xin. And the last of them was an old tortoise who wore nothing but a cloak across his shoulder and a long thin staff in his claws.

The sage reptile leaned his long neck over the pond and smiled a gentle grin. "You've did well letting him go." Master Oogway said as he gazed to the wolf with his brown eyes. "He truly is like you."

"A part of me is a part of him." The great white wolf lifted his muzzle to the group as they looked at him knowingly. "But what can you expect," He shrugged. The Green-eyed wolf, the Creator of Life, beamed as he flashed his sparkling fangs. "…I created him."

* * *

Shen sank immediately beneath the surface. He waited for the return into his body, but he found himself to be running out of air. He felt the crush of his lungs. The lion thought the returning was not working and tried to swim for the surface, but something pulled on his leg. A force took hold and Shen screamed out in horror, his words nothing but muffled grumbles and bubbles of air. Away from the light he was dragged, trying desperately to claw back up.

Soon the light went away and all around was pitch black. Silence fell. Shen could not see, nor hear, feel, touch, taste or smell. He was blind in the dark.

Then, just like in his last vision of the abyss, a terrible pain struck at Shen's heart. He roared out in agony and clasped his chest, huffing intensely. It felt like a terrible burning sensation, as if someone had stabbed red hot blade through him and was twisting it, torturing Shen from the inside out. The lion snarled as the unbelievable pain returned and he gasped out. It went away; the sting, the pain, it all simply vanished.

Shen blinked his eyes, he could see something. It was light, a splinter of shimmering fiery sunlight. It was hazy but Shen could never mistake such magnificence. His chest ached, arms and legs burned. There was a cold taste on his tongue with a dried tang of metal. His fur was wet, dripping with water. A warm feeling came over him.

The lion sighed in delight.

"S-Shen…?" A familiar voice whispered in his ear. It was soft and sweet like a fresh ripe peach.

"Mmm…?" Was his subconscious reply.

"Shen?" The voice called again, a spark of joy in its tone.

"Fu?" Whispered another recognisable voice, it was a little more authoritative, but cracked like the other one.

"He just said something! Look, he's smiling!"

"What?" A chorus of voices gasped.

Shen felt something touch his cheek, holding his face and lifting it up. "Shen?" The first voice went high as it continued to call his name. "Shen?"

Shen fluttered open his strained eyes, pulling the lids back as the light came back to his sight. And as he looked up to the flaming sky, the feline's gaze shifted to the left and he sighed. For above any other creature that he first laid sight on, it was the teary violet eyes and grey and black spotted face of his wife. "Fu…" He breathed.

The lynx let slip another tear, yet it was no longer ones of sorrow. They were happy tears, jubilant and overwhelmed with emotions. She gave off a laugh that Shen knew all too well as a gasping laugh when you can't believe the truth even though it's staring you right in the face. "You're alive…." Shen lifted up a heavy arm as his paw came to her cheek. Fu couldn't help but nuzzle it. "Shen…my Shen." She laid down her own paw over his. The feline smiled as he pulled down the lynx till their lips met. The kiss was long and adoring. The reunited couple settled into it immediately.

"Shen!" Jai squealed. The black cat pulled away from Fu and leaned on his side as the lioness jumped onto his body and latched her arms around his neck. "You're alive!" Shen did well to bite back down a hiss at the pain in his chest. He replaced it with a good laugh as he returned the hug. "You're alive!" The sound of Jai's shrieks of joy rung throughout the village of Xi'an, raising the attention of all who dwelled within its walls. And as those who bowed lifted their heads and looked down on the feline they failed to comprehend how the saviour was alive. Tai Lung rushed to his foster brother's side, joining Fu and Jai as they questioned the black feline as to how he survived.

The members of the Furious Five all gathered around him as the commotion rose. Husto and Leo both shared looks that seemed both comical and lost. Like the villagers and the rest of the pack they failed to grasp how Shen lived. But their troubling thoughts were silenced as an uproar of cheers and applause ricocheted through the market square and the streets of the village, all celebrating the return of their saviour. It wasn't before too long that the Blood Knights of the pack found themselves joining in on the merriment as they mingled with themselves and the villagers too.

And out from the crowd of gawkers a little child's voice rang in Shen's ears like a bell. "Baba!" Shen's head snapped to source of the yell. Standing at the front of the pack, a stunned Po and Tigress gawked with open mouths at the sight of Shen. Between them, holding their paws was the hybrid Shen had promised to see again.

"Hao!" Shen shouted as he sat up and outstretched an arm, motioning for his son to come to him. The cub released Tigress and Po's paws as he bolted across the stone cobbled square and leapt into his father's arms, grasping him in with all that his little muscles could take- never letting go. "Son." Shen cried. He slithered his arm around his wife and son, and with a smile he pulled in another member of his family.

Jai's lip trembled as she felt her brother take hold of her shoulder and yank her into the family hug. The lioness felt wholesome once again.

Tigress and Po looked to each other, shocked that after they had walked all the way to the cabin, telling Hao that his father was dead and brought him back to the village, only to find the very feline they presumed to have left the world sitting up and holding his family in his arms. Po's gawking muzzle stretched out into a smile and he blinked his eyes, setting them back to their normal shine of emerald green as he took Tigress by the paw. The striped kung fu master beamed a massive grin as she allowed her husband to drag her towards their friend and greet him back to the realm of the living.

* * *

It was the calling of Shen's name that first reached the old red panda's large ears, only dampening his torn heart and bringing him deeper into despair. But when the crowds of the streets went out in their holler of excitement, Shifu lifted his head out of his nimble hands and leaned round got to his feet. He looked out with his glossy sapphire eyes and as he peered out from the shadows of the alley where he had put himself, the Grand Master felt existence return to his old bones and his heart beat healthily once more.

He wanted to run out there, to shove past the crowds and run up to his son and forgive him for everything he had done. To say he was sorry and that he loved him. But Shifu held back, his face half showing round the corner of the alley way. He couldn't bring himself to move. An expression of guilt etched his wrinkly features.

There came the sound of footsteps from behind. The panda's ears swung round to behind him as sign he acknowledged the being presence. He knew the pattern and the sound of who it was in his wake. "You should go out there, y'know." The Creator of Life growled in all but whisper so he was not heard by the villagers. Shifu turned round and sighed. He glanced to the shade at his side where the gleaming green eyes of the wolf glowed powerfully. "You deserve him, he needs you."

"He's already got all he needs, I don't want to impose."

The Creator chuckled humorously. "You always were one for formalities, Shifu. For once, you have to let go of your past. You memory betrays you, my old friend, if it was not for you Shen would have never been found in that blizzard." The red panda shuddered at the thought. "Because of you everything that you see has happened. It is because of you and everyone out there that he is who he is." Shifu lifted his head to the wolf in the darkness. "Go to him, Shifu. Love him. It would make him all the happier….and you too."

The red panda stared into the emerald eyes of the white wolf, and as he did Shifu closed his own eyes and did something he had not done for a very long time. Taking in a long deep breath through his nose, the Grand Master could feel an energy swelling within him. It was old, ancient, yet raw with power. When the Grand Master pulled back his eyes lids, his eyes were no longer their remarkable blue but a heated red. Though this panda was not a feral, he was much more than that. His gaze was keen, intellectual and full of a primeval predatory instinct he had not known since the day he left his family for the life of kung fu. Oh the feeling was blissful, yet Shifu knew his place- it was no longer his place to be such a creature, but the flames would burn eternally in his heart and soul. For he was a special red panda. He was a Blood Knight.

Shifu smiled in gratitude as he bowed his head in respect to the Creator of Life. "It was good to see you one more time."

"We shall meet again, Shifu. But not for a long time." The hidden white wolf dipper his muzzle in traditional salute back. Shifu blinked his eyes and set them back into their casual sapphire blaze. "Now go. Go and be with your family. You always was and will be a terrific father."

The sound of the words melted his heart, sending a surge of heartfelt love that he had not sensed in his ragged body since the day his sons laid waste to the Valley of Peace. He swelled with satisfaction and pride. Giving the widest smile that he had not worn for many a year. The Grand Master gave into his emotions' desires as he slipped round the corner of the wall and out into the sunlight. The kung fu master dashed for his son, caring not of his rude behaviour as he shoved the crowds aside and ran up to give Shen the most loving cuddle that he had ever given.

It was their first hug since Shen was a cub.

The applause of the audience went wild.

From in the shadows of the alleyway, the white wolf's eyes bounced in the shade as he chuckled knowledgeably, his lips curling back to reveal the rows of perfect glittering fangs and plum purple gums. His laughter echoed in like a whisper as his lively green orbs and teeth faded into blackness as he became all but a legend.


End file.
